What We've Found
by illmakeitjustwatch
Summary: This is the sequel to What's Hidden. Don't have to read that to read this. See the first chapter for more details. Now that details are starting to become out in the open for the girls, will they be able to stay strong and hold on to each other to get through the rough times still to come? Trigger Warning: Deals with self-injury! T for the time being, but will eventually go to M.
1. Explanation and Notes

**A/N: Okay, this is the official sequel to "What's Hidden" So, here's the deal. This is a chapter by chapter recap of "What's Hidden" for those of you who did not read it, or for those who did and just need a refresher. I wanted to make it so you didn't necessarily have to read that one to read this. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask!**

Notes all are regarding Rachel unless otherwise noted:

**Ch. 1: Prologue**

**Ch. 2: Rachel's Week From Hell - Monday**

Accidental cut while shaving legs, transfixed on the site of the blood

Slushy shower

Quinn doesn't laugh, but is concerned

First cut

Cut total: 5

**Ch. 3: Rachel's Week From Hell - Tuesday**

Insults from the Glee Club

Finn doesn't stand up for her

Quinn watching out for her

No plans to stop with the cutting

Cut total: 15

**Ch. 4: Rachel's Week from Hell - Wednesday**

Quinn still keeping an eye out and protecting Rachel without her knowledge

Day two of clingy Finn

Dance classes cancelled

Jeep won't start

No cuts today, total remains at 15

**Ch. 5: Rachel's Week from Hell - Thursday **

Cuts before school

Appetite returns

Quinn says "Hi" and smiles

Clingy Finn, day three

Tossed into the dumpster by jocks

Quinn pulls her out, noticing the blood on Rachel's arm

Quinn begins to figure out Rachel's secret

Vows to be more careful

Cut total: 20

**Ch. 6: Rachel's Week From Hell - Friday**

Catches Finn cheating

2 more cuts in the school bathroom

Breaks you with Finn

Tells off Finn, the Glee Club, and Schue

Quinn follows Rachel and tries to apologize

Shelby seeing the girls at the park

Cut total: 22

**Ch. 7: Rachel's Week from Hell - Saturday**

Dads have been gone for a week, will be gone for another

Dads are home for less then 1 weekend a month, a day or two at a time

Cut total: 22

**Ch. 8: Rachel's Week from Hell - Sunday, Part 1**

Wakes up in the living room

Unable to fall back asleep, decides to cut

Cut total: 35

**Ch 9: Rachel's Week from Hell - Sunday, Part 2**

Bleeds through the bandages, leaving blood on the sheets

Sees Shelby in the grocery store with Beth for the first time and instantly recognizes the baby

Rachel confronts Shelby in the store

Sees Shelby in the parking lot and refuses to acknowledge her

Quinn sees Rachel crying on her way home and follows her to her house

Rachel confronts Quinn about seeing Beth with Shelby and asked what she did to make Quinn hate her.

Quinn tells her that she doesn't blame Shelby for throwing her aside, that she would have done the same

Quinn asks Rachel if she's hurting herself, causing Rachel to panic

Quinn decides to talk to Miss Pillsbury to help Rachel

Quinn plans to gain Rachel's trust and help her, like it or not

Rachel feels alone and hates herself, also has lost a bit of weight

Cut total: 35

**Ch. 10: Busted**

Rachel gets called to Miss Pillsbury's office because of Quinn

Rachel is able to lie to Miss Pillsbury that she is okay and explains the truth about quitting Glee

Rachel gets slushied, Quinn leads her to the bathroom, Rachel yells and tells her she knows she told and kicks her out

Re-opens 2 cuts on the elliptical out of frustration

Cut total: 35

**Ch. 11 Getting Under Her Skin**

Quinn's P.O.V

Quinn decides to be Rachel's protector for the day

Quinn noticed slushy on the floor by Rachel's locker

Rachel refuses to acknowledge Quinn in any way

Quinn threatens Karofsky that Rachel is now off limits

Santana, Mercedes, and Kurt circle Rachel and yell, Quinn threatens them to back off

Quinn takes Rachel to the bathroom where Rachel breaks down on Quinn

Quinn sings to Rachel which calms her down

Rachel agrees to Quinn's offer to help, but only after she proves herself worth trusting

Quinn tells Rachel that she doesn't want her to feel alone anymore

Cut total: 35

**Ch. 12 Well, It's a Start**

Mr. Shu tells Rachel he's willing to overlook her attitude if she comes back to Glee Says the other students did nothing wrong, only she did

Quinn stands up to Mr. Shu on Rachel's behalf

Rachel invites Quinn over for the night

Rachel answers the door, letting Quinn in, wearing a t-shirt and not hiding her arms

Cut total: 35

**Ch. 13 The Sleep Over**

Rachel noticed Quinn looking at her arm, Rachel pulls away. When Quinn tries to apologize, she tells her not to and that she's trying to become more comfortable about her and is not ready to talk about it yet, but the shirt is a start for her

Rachel allows Quinn to see the cuts on her thighs later that night

Rachel begins to talk about her dads not being around

Rachel tells Quinn about how Shelby walking away hurt her

Rachel tells Quinn that she forgives her for their past

Phone rings at 2am; Rachel's dad

Cut total: 35

**Ch. 14 It'll Be Alright**

Rachel's dads will be back later than planned due to the weather

Both girls realize they are starting to have feelings for one another

Rachel admits to only seeing her dad for a few days here and there every month and that she thinks that they don't want her and that they regret having her

Rachel asks Quinn to sing to her

Cut total: 35

**Ch. 15 Quinn's Idea**

Quinn is protective of Rachel even in her sleep

Rachel finds comfort in Quinn's arms

Quinn offers to stay until her dads return

Rachel gives Quinn a spare key for the house

Cut total: 35

**Ch. 16 It's Time To Talk**

Quinn's mom is away for a few days

Rachel's daddy doesn't tell her that he loves her on the phone

15 cuts added in the shower

Quinn find Rachel in the shower, naked, bleeding, and sobbing

Quinn realizes she's getting turned on seeing Rachel naked

Quinn tells Rachel that it's time that they talk about the cutting

Cut total: 50

**Ch. 17 Breathe**

Rachel tells Quinn when and why she started cutting

Rachel breaks down again, Quinn sings again to calm her

Quinn finds Rachel in her dad's room. She tells the that they still love her

Santana seeing Rachel and Quinn out, Quinn threats Santana

Cut total: 50

**Ch. 18 I'm Ready**

They hold hands throughout the movie, Quinn initiates it

Rachel sings for Quinn

Rachel is ready to talk to Quinn

Cut total: 50

**Ch. 19 Keep Holding On**

Rachel tells Quinn she feels like she not worthy of being loved

Cuts for control

Not ready to stop cutting yet

Quinn apologizes for everything when she thinks Rachel is asleep

Quinn tells Rachel that she thinks that she likes her as more than a friend but can't tell her when she's awake for fear of rejection

Rachel kisses Quinn and tells her she likes her as well

Cut total: 50

**Ch. 20 Teach Me?**

Rachel admits to still being a virgin

Quinn asks Rachel to be her girlfriend. Rachel says yes

Quinn asks Rachel to teach her to masturbate

Cut total: 50

**Ch. 21 The Deed**

Rachel teaches Quinn to masturbate, along with demonstrating it for her and watching Quinn do it as well

Cut total: 50

**Ch. 22 It Was Going To Be A Good Day**

Semi-sexy times in the shower

Quinn tells Rachel she's not ashamed of her in any way

Cut total: 50

**Ch. 23 The Dance Off**

The girls take a trip to the mall

Quinn noticed Shelby watching them at the mall

Shelby noticed Rachel's arms

Very good day for both girls

Cut total: 50

**Ch. 24 Rachel Breaks, Again**

Quinn refuses to hide that Rachel is her girlfriend

Santana gets pissed that they are dating, Quinn tells her off again

Karofsky attacks Rachel, Santana protects her

Rachel doesn't relax for Quinn

Cut total: 50

**Ch. 25 Shelby Returns**

Shelby pays Rachel a visit

Shelby confronts Rachel about the cuts she saw the day before

Both Rachel and Quinn tell off Shelby

Rachel shuts herself in the bathroom, but unlocks the door for Quinn when she tells her she won't come in

Rachel pulls away from Quinn

Both girls break down

Quinn prays

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 26 The Surprise**

Quinn feels guilty for giving Beth to Shelby and potentially ruining any chance Rachel had at having a mom

The Berry men will be home for less than four days before leaving again

Rachel is still very jumpy and quiet around Quinn, but does allow one hug

Quinn returns home since the Berry men are back

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 27 Kicked Out**

Russell is back in the Fabray house, him and Judy are back together

Russell slaps Quinn, twice

Quinn tells her parents that she's gay and dating Rachel

Quinn is kicked out again, this time for good

Quinn shows up on Rachel's doorstep

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 28 Quinn's Confession**

Berry men approve of Quinn staying

Rachel apologizes for pulling away

Quinn tells why she told her parents

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 29 The Family Talk**

Quinn is still in shock in the bathtub when Rachel returns to her room. She washes her and helps her get dressed

Quinn tells Rachel's dad what she did to her in the past

Quinn admits that Russell has hit her all her life

Quinn starts to feel like she belongs somewhere

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 30 Quinn Steps In**

Quinn's new bedroom gets redecorated

Surprise visit from Santana

Quinn tells Santana what happened

Rachel allows Quinn to tell Santana that she has been cutting

Santana promises to help both girls

Santana admits to cutting herself, but has stopped

Rachel is furious when she finds out her dads are leaving for another month

Quinn holds on to Rachel so she won't cut herself and Rachel struggles to get away from her

Quinn texts Santana for help

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 31 Santana Takes Control**

Santana realizes that Rachel is starting to panic because she is scared in Quinn's tight hold Santana makes Quinn let her go

Santana helps Rachel get through her panic attack

Rachel is still hiding something

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 32 The Truth Comes Out**

Rachel feels like an inconvenience, useless, and unloved

Rachel admits to thinking of killing herself, a handful of times and still does

Santana tells Quinn that she plans to stay with them so they aren't alone and have more support

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 33 Santana's Story**

The Berry men have left again

Santana started to cut after her mom left, and did for two years

Santana tells Rachel that she intentionally pointed her out so that everyone would be laughing at her while she put her life back together

Santana sets a few basis "rules" for Rachel.

Santana and Rachel end on friendly terms

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 34 Plans**

Nothing important happens, playful banter between the girls

Plans for the day/Santana staying arranged

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 35 What Did I Get Us In To**

Rachel and Quinn's shower time gets interrupted by Santana

Rachel tells Santana where the rest of her cuts are and why she was bleeding the day Karofsky attacked her

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 36 I'm Proud Of You**

Rachel and Santana notice Shelby at the grocery store

Massive shopping trip for all

Rachel wardrobe is cleaned out

Santana makes Quinn let Rachel have some alone time in the bathroom to think considering her world as been turned upside down. She knows she's not going to cut.

Santana finds no evidence of blood when she checks after Rachel's asleep

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 37 Strange**

Rachel is terrified for school

Santana declares Rachel off limits

Rachel is quiet and unsocial at school

Mr. Shu apologizes to Rachel

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 38 Talk To Me**

Quinn's not sure what to do when she gets home

Quinn finds Rachel in her bra an underwear on the bathroom floor. She has cut, but is playing with a razor blade

Quinn tells Rachel that it's ok if she cuts and that she probably will while she's trying to stop. Rachel gives Quinn the blade

Rachel asks Quinn to talk to her

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 39 I Love You**

Quinn still has regrets over giving up Beth

Rachel wants to go back to glee

Rachel hasn't eaten since her breakfast smoothie

The Berry have legal custody of Quinn

Quinn can't forgive herself for what she did to Rachel

Quinn tells Rachel she loves her when Rachel's asleep

Cut total: 70

**Ch. 40 Slushied**

Rachel looks at herself naked in the mirror is disgusted and vows to skip a few meals and increase her exercise

Santana notices Rachel flinch when Brittany hugs her - askes Quinn when she cut, and Quinn tells her that she didn't the night before

Quinn and Rachel are the only two who know about Santana's cutting -Brittany does not

Rachel gets two slushies

Quinn notices Rachel's change of clothes

Rachel sneers at Quinn to leave her alone when she asks

Cut total: 85

**Ch. 41 She Needs Help**

Quinn slushies the jocks that got Rachel, along with a kick to the groin

Rachel runs away when she's let go

Quinn realizes that Rachel really needs help

Rachel goes for a run after school, Quinn falls asleep, wakes two hours later and Rachel's still not home

Rachel ends up sitting in front of Shelby's house, lost

Santana picks Rachel up from Shelby's

Rachel tells off Shelby again, but does show her a moment of thanks

Santana tells Rachel that she knows that she cut and needs to strip and take off all bandages

Cut total: 85

**Ch. 42 Dr. Santana**

Santana explains to Rachel that this is not being done to call her out or put her on the spot, she just needs to see how bad it has gotten

Santana shows her cuts; close to 100 on each hip

Santana realizes that one of the cuts on Rachel's stomach is infected

Santana tells Quinn she's shocked that Rachel is letting them in like this, but that it's a good thing because it means that she knows that she needs help and is starting to reach out

Quinn realizes that Rachel hasn't truly forgiven their past

Quinn is close to falling apart, but doesn't want to add more problems for Rachel

The infected cut isn't that bad and needs to be watched closely. Will need antibiotics if it gets worse

Santana notices that Rachel is more calm/relaxed the rest of the night while Quinn looks ready to break down

Cut total: 85

**Ch. 43 Disowned**

Rachel and Brittany have history - same dance class since age 3

Quinn's belongings show up on the doorstep. She is disowned

Quinn asks Santana what it's like to cut

Quinn has a break down

Quinn tells Rachel that she tried to cut but couldn't

Rachel feels guilty and that everything is her fault. She plans to close herself off from the girls and act like she's okay, even if it kills her in the process

Cut total: 85

**Ch. 44 Glee!**

The girls go back to Glee

Quinn is now talking to one of the girl, usually Rachel, when something is bothering her

Rachel continues to pull into herself

Cut total: 115

**Ch. 45 Finn Shows Up**

Finn shows up and wants Finchel back together. Rachel refuses

Finn kisses Rachel and Quinn sees

All hell breaks loose - Quinn and Santana are both pissed

Cut total: 115

**Ch. 46 Brittany Seeks The Truth**

Rachel hasn't been sleeping or eating much. Dark circles under her eye and protruding bones show this

Rachel cuts her hip, but instead of release, she feels pain

Rachel tells Brittany what really happened

Rachel is starting to break down

Rachel wakes up alone

Cut total: 115

**Ch. 47 Enough**

The girls leave Rachel alone

The Berry's are leaving Rachel alone again and only spending a few hours (4) with Rachel for her birthday

Rachel goes to Shelby's to ask why she wasn't good enough for her

Rachel ends it with Quinn via text

Rachel cuts deep and nearly passes out. Quinn finds her in the bathtub

Cut total: 118

**Ch. 48 I'm So Sorry**

Rachel gets sick and has a panic attack. Quinn manages to calm her

Quinn apologizes

Quinn tells Rachel that she obviously hasn't been honest lately judging by the large amount of fresh cuts on Rachel body (Rachel is still naked at this point)

Rachel wasn't trying to kill herself

Shelby appears in the bathroom as Quinn is bandaging Rachel

Cut total: 118

**Ch. 49 Take Care Of Her**

Rachel is still hurt by Quinn and her actions

Quinn convinces Shelby that Rachel needs to be the one to tell her what's going on

Shelby doesn't want to walk away again, she wants to be in Rachel's life

Quinn realizes that she forgot Rachel's birthday

Shelby explains to Quinn that she wants her to see Beth and to have a relationship with her when she's ready

Rachel pulls away from Quinn in bed. Tells her she's still mad and hurt and doesn't want to be touched

Cut total: 118

**Ch. 51 The Hospital**

Quinn wakes Rachel from a nightmare at 3am and Rachel refuses to tell her what it was about

Quinn notices that Rachel doesn't look good

Quinn searches Rachel and finds a badly infected cut on her right hip

Quinn drags Rachel to the Emergency Room and threatens Shelby that if she really cares, she'll be there

Rachel needs massive antibiotics for the infection and is also 15 pounds underweight

Shelby does show up at the hospital, Beth in tow

Rachel hugs Shelby

Rachel cuddles with Quinn in bed

Cut total: 118

**Ch. 52 Hell Breaks Loose**

Quinn makes Rachel eat

Santana apologizes and Rachel pulls away and yells at her for walking away

Santana and Shelby argue, Quinn defends Shelby

Brittany notices Rachel isn't taking the fighting well

Cut total: 118

**Ch. 53 Second Chances**

Brittany yells at the other three to knock it off and that they are scaring her

Quinn tries to get close to Rachel but Brittany won't let her

Brittany notices the cuts on Rachel's arm when her sweatshirt sleeve gets pulled up

Brittany gets Rachel to start talking

Brittany has known that the girls were hiding something from her, but wasn't sure what until now. She had an idea since it was how Santana acted when she was cutting

Rachel finally opens up

Rachel feels everything and everyone would be better off without her. She feels she doesn't deserve to be alive

Brittany makes Santana leave the room, she knows that the other three need to be alone

Shelby apologizes

Rachel agrees to give Shelby one chance, but gives her rules

Rachel agrees to go to therapy after the holidays

Shelby suggests therapy for Quinn as well, who immediately agrees

Rachel tells what the nightmare was

Quinn vows to make Rachel's birthday up to her

Rachel and Santana have their talk- Rachel didn't want to bother either of them

Santana tells Rachel that she doesn't really understand how serious this is and how it would kill Quinn if anything happened to her

Santana admits that Brittany didn't know about her cutting until after she had stopped - come on, she sees her naked all of the time

Rachel and Quinn spend the evening alone, mostly in silence since conversations isn't needed between them

Rachel finally forgives Quinn

Cut total: 118


	2. Christmas Eve

**Christmas Eve**

The holidays are supposed to be a joyous time for all. However, inside the Berry house it was a different story. Sure, Quinn and Rachel were getting along with no major issues, but there was still slight tension between the pair. Tension that was mostly caused because the girls were not entirely sure what to say to one another. Rachel had forgiven Quinn, and the secret of Rachel's nightmares had finally came to light, but they continued to feel as though they were walking on egg shells around another in hopes of not causing a rift between them.

Brittany and Santana had decided to leave the girls be for a few days following Rachel's "intervention", and were off spending the holidays with their own families and each other.

Shelby had messaged the girls a few times to check on them and to make sure that everything was going as well as could be expected. She was keeping her word and respecting the girls need for privacy and not pushing her way into their lives.

Quinn and Rachel were cuddled together on the couch with the fireplace roaring as they watched the snow fall outside. The Christmas tree was perched in the corner of the room, brightly lit up. Underneath was Quinn's presents from the Berry men, gifts from each other, Shelby, Santana, and Brittany. Everyone had exchanged gifts the previous day, with the agreement to open them Christmas morning.

Quinn was reclined back against the arm rest of the couch while Rachel's back was pressed into her front with her head on Quinn's chest. Quinn had her arms wrapped around Rachel, their hands linked together on Rachel stomach as Rachel hummed along to the quiet Christmas music playing on the radio.

"Hey Rach, do you think maybe we should talk about what's going on between us? We're only speaking when we have to, and it just feels awkward and forced. We need to talk if we want this to work. No more of this tip-toeing around each other crap. It didn't work last time, and it's not going to work this time either."

Rachel bit her lip as she thought. She knew Quinn was right, but that didn't make it much easier. "I know we need to. I'm just not sure what to say honestly."

"Lets just start simple, okay? Hi, I'm Quinn Fabray. I've been living with you, Rachel Berry, my girlfriend, for about a month now."

Rachel couldn't help but giggle at Quinn's statement. But, she would be lying if she said it didn't make her feel better. "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you Quinn. I wasn't sure who this person that has been living with me was. It's nice to finally know."

Quinn smiled at Rachel's playful tone. She'd missed that side of Rachel more than she realized and finally hearing it after weeks, made her feel better. It was a step that they both needed. She placed a kiss to the top of the brunette head on her chest, inhaling the smell that was distinctly Rachel as she did so. She'd missed their cuddling like this, and it was the first time they had in a few days. They had been keeping their space, but having Rachel back in her arms made everything feel right again, even if it wasn't. "So, what do you want to do tomorrow?"

"I'm not sure. I'm so used to spending the holiday alone that I don't know what to do in this situation. When my dads were actually home for Christmas, we just opened presents and spent the day in our pajamas watching movies together. We would make something simple for dinner, like pizza, and that was it. What should we do tomorrow?"

"We can do anything we want to, baby. There's nothing that says we have to do anything. We can spend the day in bed if we so choose. However, I would prefer that we didn't, not that I don't love being in bed with you, I just think maybe we should do something. What about celebrating your birthday tomorrow?"

"No, we don't have to do that. I told you not to worry about it. My birthday was a week ago. I think it's too late for that anyway."

"It's never too late. I told you that I wanted to make it up to you. I still feel terrible that I forgot. You don't deserve that. Especially not from me."

"No Quinn-"

"Rachel, stop fighting me on this. Please, let me do this for you. I need to make this right for both of us. Please?"

Rachel still wanted to tell her no and to drop the subject, but the pleading tone in Quinn's voice was enough for her to understand that this was something that the girl really needed to do. So, even though she was still hesitant; "Okay. If you feel that this is something you need to do, then alright. I'm not going to stop you. I just ask, please don't make this into a big deal. Just let it be something simple between the two of us. That's all I ask."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you." Quinn breathed out a sigh of relief. "I promise it'll be just us and nothing too extravagant."

"Quinn, it's getting kind of late, and I'm tired. Can we please go to bed now? I just want to lay down."

Quinn, realizing that their conversation was over, quickly agreed. "Sure. Go ahead upstairs and I'll meet you up there. I'm going to turn off the lights down here and I'll meet you in bed."

It took Quinn less than five minutes to take care of the downstairs, but by the time she had made it to bed, Rachel was already asleep, curled in a ball on her side.

Quinn made her way onto the bed and pulled Rachel flush against her. Even in her sleep, Rachel pushed herself into Quinn's body, searching for the comfort that she still found in her arms. "I love you, Rachel. So much that it scares me sometimes. I promise to make tomorrow special for you." Placing a final kiss to Rachel's head, Quinn snuggled into the warm bed, joining Rachel for a peaceful night sleep as the snow continued to fall outside.

**A/N: Oh, hi! I guess I should apologize that it has taken me so long to finally start the sequel. So, I'm sorry! Please forgive me! That being said, I'm back! And I already have the next two chapters planned! So, yay for that! I'll try not to make you guys wait too long for the next chapter! And yes, I'm aware that this chapter kind of stinks, but I had no idea how to start back with this story. I promise the next chapter will be better! **

**Also, big thank you to my beta dancelikeheya for putting up with me and my claiming that "I'm going to start writing soon!" Since February. **


	3. Christmas

**Christmas**

Quinn was the first to wake up that morning, a quick glance at the clock told her it was only 7am and still very much dark outside. She noticed that she had kept the same position during the night, while Rachel had turned in her sleep. Currently, said brunette was facing Quinn, her face buried in the taller girl's neck, while she had Quinn's shirt clutched in her fist as if it held the secrets to the Universe and she would be damned if she was going to let go. Quinn couldn't help but smile and press a kiss to the mop of hair tickling her chest, neck, and face.

In all honesty, Quinn had no idea what they should do for the day. She had a few ideas and intentions, but since when had things gone right for them? "What if today doesn't go well? I want to make this day about her, but what if I screw up? Oh God, what if she hates me after today? Please, please let this day be okay. If not for me, but for her, she deserves it more than anyone. It has to go right for her."

"Stop thinking so loud. I'm trying to sleep," Rachel grumbled.

"I'm sorry, I'll be quieter."

"How about you tell me what's on your mind instead?"

"Just thinking about today. I'm scared that it's not going to go well for us."

Rachel pulled herself out of Quinn's body so she could look into the hazel eyes that she'd come to love so much "Quinn, you don't have to make a big deal over this. I'm just as happy to spend the day with you in bed or on the couch. Something simple. However, I know you better than that and I know you want to do more, and that's okay. Just know that whatever we do, it'll be perfect since I'll be with you."

Quinn's heart turned into mush at Rachel's confession, before reality hit her again. "Rach, since when has anything gone right for us?"

"You're here with me now, aren't you?" Rachel leaned up and kissed Quinn's nose before yawning.

Figuring that no time is better then the present to get started "I'm going to go take a shower. Go back to sleep and I'll wake you when I'm done, okay?"

Rachel let out a sleepy "m'kay" before she was back asleep.

Quinn was grateful that she didn't protest. She wouldn't have been surprised if Rachel had asked to join her in the shower, therefore ruining idea number one.

* * *

Quinn took her time in the shower and getting herself ready for the day. She wanted Rachel to sleep a while longer, but it had been an hour and she was starting to get anxious. "Well, I guess it's now or never. Time to start the disaster" she told herself.

Quinn made her was back into Rachel's bathroom, filling the tub with warm water and lavender bubble bath.

Quinn took a deep breath, calming her nerves once more, before moving to join Rachel back in bed.

"Hey Rach, it's time to wake up. Come on, sweetie," Quinn cooed while running her fingers through the smaller girl's locks and placing a kiss on her forehead. She couldn't help but giggle when Rachel pouted and her brows creased as she began to stir awake. "I ran a warm bath for you. Come on, before it gets cold."

Rachel's brown eyes fluttered open to meet Quinn's, a smile playing on her lips, before she pulled the girl into a hug, breathing in the familiar sent that calmed her. "Will you be joining me in the bath, Ms. Fabray?" Rachel purred into Quinn's ear.

"I wish I was, but no. This is just for you. I have a few things to take care of while you relax. I'll help you in, if you would like."

Rachel pouted, but agreed, pulling herself from Quinn's arms and standing from the bed, pulling Quinn up with her.

* * *

Quinn helped Rachel undress and settle into the tub before making her way to the living room. Everything had to be perfect.

* * *

It was 45 minutes later when Quinn deemed everything ready. She had made a breakfast feast of vegan pancakes, soy sausage, fruit, and orange juice. The living room was lit by the soft glow of the Christmas tree and the fireplace. Breakfast was set up on the coffee table, which she had moved in front of the fire.

* * *

Making her way back to the bathroom, she found Rachel still in the tub with her eyes closed. The bubbles had disappeared and she was pretty well positive that the water was getting cold.

"Rach, you've got to be freezing in there! Lets get you out and into some warm clothes." Sticking her hand into the water to drain the tub, she discovered that the water was indeed cold and that Rachel hadn't moved. Looking at Rachel's chest, she relaxed when she noticed that she was still breathing, but had fallen back to sleep. She made a mental note that they would be going to bed early tonight considering how tired Rachel seemed to be.

* * *

When the water finished draining, Quinn snuck a look at Rachel's infected hip and was relieved to see that it had healed, but was still a bit red and swollen. Considering she still had a few days left of antibiotics, she wasn't too worried, but still planned to keep an eye on the area.

"Alright Rachel, time to wake up! Out of the tub before you freeze to death!" She felt a little guilty when Rachel jumped and sat up, but she was awake at least.

* * *

"Thank you Quinn. Breakfast was fantastic. I honestly don't know the last time I've eaten so much." Rachel groaned while rubbing her bloated belly.

"You're welcome, my love. I'm glad you enjoyed it. Now, considering that it is, after all, Christmas, I believe we both have some presents to open."

* * *

Christmas presents were open and the paper was thrown about the living room within a few minutes, leaving both girls smiling.

Quinn handed Rachel a tiny box. "I know it's kind of cheesy, but I thought it would be something cute."

"You named a star after me. I have my own star. Quinn! This is amazing! It's not cheesy at all. I love it!" Rachel leaned forward, placing a kiss to Quinn's lips, causing both girls to moan at the contact.

Quinn pulled away first. "I'm not done yet. There's one more."

"You didn't have to get me anything else. I would have been happy with just the star."

Rachel opened another small box to find a silver heart pendent with a star cut from the middle, attached to a thin chain. "Oh Quinn. It's beautiful."

"Turn it over."

As gently as she could, Rachel removed the necklace from the box, turning it to read "To My Star. Love Quinn." Rachel looked up at Quinn with tears brimming in her eyes before launching herself into the girl, necklace clutched tightly in her hand. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you, Quinn!"

"So, I'm assuming you like it than?"

"I think we passed like a long time ago. I adore this. Put it on me? I never want to take it off."

* * *

When Rachel had settled back down, she handed Quinn an almost identical box. "I hope you like it. I wasn't sure what to get you."

Quinn's box contained the same thin chain, but it was holding a heat with an engraved rose. The back read "To the keeper of my heart. Love, Rachel"

This time it was Quinn's turn to cry as she pulled Rachel into her. "Can we just stay in the moment forever?"

"I wish. I love you, Quinn Fabray. Merry Christmas"

"Merry Christmas. I love you more than I thought possible, Rachel Berry."

This time it was Quinn who pulled Rachel into a searing kiss until they had no choice but to pull away to breathe.

* * *

The next few hours were spent on the couch watching "A Christmas Story" on replay and cuddling.

It was the third time the movie was starting when Quinn noticed Rachel had fallen asleep. "Perfect timing" she told herself.

Carefully wiggling out from under her girlfriend, Quinn gave Rachel the pillow she had been laying on, letting her have something to cuddle with and hopefully stay asleep.

Grabbing her phone on the way to the kitchen, Quinn send off a text to Santana.

To Santana: "Everything still on for tonight?"

It took less then a minute for her reply "You bet your ass, Fabray."

To Santana: "Thanks. I'm going to make dinner and dessert now and I'll let you know when we leave later. The key is where I told you."

* * *

It took Quinn almost three hours, but she had done it. A small chocolate cake, decorated with white icing and pink roses sat on the counter. On the stove, there was homemade chicken-less dumplings with carrots and peas, while a veggie salad sat next to the stove. The refrigerator held a bottle of sparkling white grape juice. Everything was vegan and tasted great, leaving Quinn incredibly proud of herself.

The kitchen table was set up with numerous candles along with the nice china she had found in the back of the cabinet.

Quinn served up dinner and set the bowls so the girls were facing each other and poured the juice into wine glasses before setting it into the ice bucket on the side of the table.

* * *

Quinn woke Rachel up with kisses peppered along her face and jaw, trying to gently coax her awake.

"Hey, what time is it?" Rachel mumbled.

"A little after four."

"Oh my, Quinn, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to fall asleep. Oh gosh, now I've probably ruined everything."

Quinn couldn't stand the guilty look on Rachel's face as her eyes started to water. "No, baby, don't cry. You didn't ruin anything. I promise. Just come with me and you'll see." She offered her hand that Rachel quickly took and pulled her into the kitchen.

"Quinn, this is beautiful. You did all this while I was asleep?"

"Yea. It took me a while and I messed up the first time I tried to make the dumplings, and I had to make them again, but I swear that they are good this time."

"I believe you. Thank you for this, Quinn. It's perfect." Rachel pulled Quinn into a kiss before letting go only a few moments later. "Can we eat now? I'm really hungry."

Quinn giggled and lead Rachel to her seat, pulling out the chair before pushing her back into place.

* * *

The girls ate while making small conversation, wanting to keep the topics light until everything had been devoured.

"Quinn, that was absolutely incredible. I can't remember the last time I've eaten so much. Well, with the exception of this morning. That one I definitely do remember. Thank you, baby."

"Oh don't worry Rach, you'll be getting used to eating like that. Don't think I don't remember the doctor saying that you are underweight," Quinn told herself. "You're welcome. However, I'm not done yet. So, why don't you go upstairs and put on some warm clothes and your boots. I'm going to put the food away and I'll meet you at the door."

"Quinn, you really, really don't have to do anything else. Seriously. This was more than enough."

"Too bad. Everything is already in place for the next part and it's too late to cancel it. Now, go!" Quinn shooed Rachel out of the kitchen and towards the stairs. Once she was out of site, another text was sent.

To Santana: "We'll be leaving within the next 5-10 minutes."

To Quinn: "Got it. All systems are go."

* * *

The pair ventured out into the evening, gloved hands grasped together, fingers intertwined. It was starting to get dark out, but there was still plenty of light and a light snow was falling.

Quinn lead Rachel slowly around the block, both girls enjoying the peace and quiet it offered. Rachel's head had found Quinn's shoulder as they walked.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, they were back outside of the Berry house a little chilly, but no worse for the wear.

"Please let Santana have had enough time. Please." Quinn begged in her head as she unlocked the door.

* * *

The girls had removed their outside wear when Quinn found herself slammed into the front door by Rachel's tiny body, lips attacking hers at full force and a tongue forcing its way into her mouth. She didn't hesitate to kiss back with as much passion as she could muster. Their breaths were hot against one another and they only parted to quickly suck in gasps of air before lips were attached again.

* * *

The make-out session had continued for five minutes, still against the door, when Quinn felt a slightly cool hand start to inch its way into her shirt and nails scratched lightly against her stomach. She hissed at the contact, which seemed to increase Rachel's boldness as the hand began to rise higher until it was cupping her bra-clad breast, gently kneading the handful of flesh she had found.

It was that pressure against her chest that brought Quinn back to the situation at hand. She pulled her lips away while grasping Rachel's arm, pulling her hand out from her shirt. "Wait, Rach. Slow down."

"Don't want to." Rachel's lips attached to her neck, causing her to groan again. She knows that she needs to stop this before it cross the line.

"Rachel, stop. Baby, this is too fast."

Finally realizing what Quinn had said, Rachel snapped away from Quinn, already starting to panic. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I thought that you would want to do that. I understand that you don't want to do that sort of thing with me. I'm sorry I jumped to that conclusion. I'm sorry. I'm just going to go up to the guest room for the night. I'm sorry."

Quinn grabbed Rachel's hand before the girl could retreat, tears already gracing her cheeks. "Rachel, it's not that I don't want to do that with you because believe me, I want to more than anything. It's just too fast for me. I'm not ready to do that sort of thing yet. It's me that should be sorry."

"I thought that you just didn't want me like that."

"I really did a number on you, didn't I? Rachel, you are breathtakingly beautiful. I'm going to tell you as many times as it takes to get you to believe me, and then, I'm going to continue to tell you every chance I get. This isn't because of you. I don't want us to rush into having sex when we aren't ready to. I know that I'm not and I'm pretty sure that you aren't either. We have so much that we need to work though before we take that next step. If we do it too early, it could screw everything up. I don't want to until we are both able to handle it. Does that make since?"

"Yes. It does. I'm sorry I freaked out. I just. I though that you didn't want me and I panicked."

"It's okay, Rach. It's nothing to be concerned over. I promise." Quinn placed a gentle kiss to Rachel's lips as she wiped away the few tears. "Listen, why don't you go upstairs and get comfortable. I'll make some hot chocolate and we can watch Funny Girl. How does that sound?"

"It sounds perfect." Rachel dropped Quinn's hands before turning and disappearing upstairs.

* * *

Quinn was just starting to walk up the staircase with a tray holding two mugs of hot chocolate and two pieces of cake, a candle perched on one of the pieces, when she heard a squeal. "Guess she found her surprise" she giggled to herself.

Quinn walked into the bedroom to find a teary eyed (yet again) Rachel standing at the foot of her bed, a tiny calico kitten in her arms.

"Quinn? What? How?"

"I had Santana help me. The walk was so she would have enough time to drop everything off. I hope you're not mad. I remembered you saying that you always wanted a kitten but were never allowed. I figured that since your dads are never really here and it's just us, it would be okay. I'm sorry if I did the wrong thing."

"Quinn, I'm not sure how many more times I can say that today has been perfect. This is amazing. I had no idea."

"That was the point of it being a surprise. However, it seemed like it took you a while to notice."

"Yea. I didn't even look at the bed. I went to the bathroom and changed and sat at the end of the bed to wait for you and I felt something bump into me and a meow. That's when I squealed. I think I scared it." Rachel looked down at the kitten in her arms, which was now nuzzling into her chest, kneading gently at her, purring quietly.

"Well, if you did scare her, she seems to have forgiven you."

"She?"

"Yea. It's a girl. She needs a name though. That's completely up to you."

" I guess I'll have to think about that one."

"Here, one more thing." Quinn took the lighter sitting on the tray and lit the single candle. "Happy Birthday, my love. Make a wish."

Rachel closed her eyes tightly before gently blowing out the candle.

"What did you wish for?"

"I can't tell you because it won't come true."

"Do you really still believe in that?"

"Of course I do. Now, movie and cuddle time."

"Just one second." Quinn pulled out her cell phone

To Santana: "Thank you. It went perfectly. I own you major."

To Quinn: "You're damn right you do! There's cat food on the kitchen counter and the litter box is in the laundry room. Don't do anything that I wouldn't do! ;)"

"Tell Santana thank you."

To Santana: "Rachel says thanks as well."

* * *

"Now Miss Berry, I believe we have cake to eat, a move to watch, and a kitten to name. Shall we get started?"

* * *

Hours later found the girls snuggled together in the dark. Rachel was on her back with the kitten lying on her chest. Quinn was curled into Rachel, her head resting on her shoulder as they gently ran their fingers over the soft ball of fur.

"What about Elphie?"

"For her name? It's fine with me."

"Quinn," Rachel whined. "You have to like it as well. She is, after all, ours."

Quinn smiled at Rachel's sentiment. "Ours? I like the sound of that. I like Elphie. I think it suits her well."

Rachel looked down at the kitten, "Are you okay with Elphie?"

The kitten looked at Rachel as if she was pondering the question before she let out a small meow, stretched, and promptly fell asleep.

"Well, I'll take that as a yes. Quinn, thank you, today was absolutely perfect. You were perfect. I couldn't have imagined a better day than today. Thank you so much."

"You're welcome. You deserved to have a day go perfect for you. I'm just glad that everything finally went right."

"I love you, Quinn."

"I love you too, Rachel."

The night ended for them with a sweet kiss and a hint of tongue before Rachel pulled away "We don't want to wake Elphie up, now do we?"

Quinn groaned. She had a slight feeling that a certain kitten may end up causing a little bit of an issue down the road. But, that was a bridge to cross when they got there.

* * *

**A/N: Alright, I hope that I did okay with this chapter. Please no tomatoes? The next chapter is planned, just needs to be written at this point. Hopefully within a week or two it will be done. As usual, thank you to dancelikeheya for being my beta, even despite some computer issues! Also, thanks to sweetlilaud for the help getting over the writer's block!**


	4. The Start

**The Start**

Quinn woke up to shuffling and slight mumbling.

"Rach? What's wrong?"

"I can't find Elphie. I've looked everywhere for her and I can't find her. What is something happened to her, Quinn?"

"I doubt that she's gone Rachel. She's probably just out exploring, or maybe she got hungry or thirsty, or maybe had to go us the litter box. I'm sure she's somewhere in the house."

"Oh no, I didn't set out anything for her. She's probably starving. I'm a horrible pet owner."

"No, you're not. Santana took care of all of that last night. She has everything that she could need. Don't worry. You're doing just fine. Come here." Quinn opened her arms, allowing Rachel to immediately fall into them. "You're okay, sweetie. It's all okay. Elphie is fine. You're fine. I'm fine. It's okay." Quinn couldn't stop herself from sounding a little annoyed by the end. She felt guilty when she felt wetness on her neck.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know. I just don't feel right. Nothing feels right to me anymore."

"Well, unless you tell me, I can't help you." Quinn's voice came out a bit more clipped than she intended, but she was getting slightly annoyed.

Quinn looked down when she felt something rubbing against her leg, realizing that it was Elphie. "Rachel, look down."

Rachel sniffled and pulled back enough so that her eyes could drift down to their feet.

When their eyes met, the kitten let out a soft meow, causing Rachel to immediately bend over and scoop her into her arms, the kitten letting out soft purrs in the process.

"See Rachel, she's just fine. Was just out wandering is all. You've got to relax a little bit and stop panicking over every little thing. She's a cat. She's going to disappear at times, it's what they do." Quinn snuck a quick glance at the clock and rolled her eyes. "Seriously? What's with your need to always be up early when we have the time to sleep in. It's only 6 in the morning. Why couldn't you have slept longer?"

"I.. I'm sorry. I just. I didn't feel her when I moved and I panicked because I thought she was gone."

"Alright, well now that we've established that she's fine, I'm going back to bed like most normal people do at this hour the day after Christmas. Feel free to join me. If not, either be quiet or go down stairs because I'm tired and would like some more sleep." By this point, Quinn was pretty sure she sounded like a major bitch, but she couldn't bring herself to care like she should. She's exhausted, and dealing with all of Rachel's issues are becoming a heavy load for her to handle. Why can't Rachel see that she needs someone too! Not everything is all about her! Quinn groaned before falling face first back into bed, yanking the covers over herself in the process.

Rachel isn't sure what to feel following Quinn's little speech and flop into the bed. "What should I do? Do I go back to bed with her or not?" she asked herself.

"Shut the light off on your way out," Quinn mumbled from the bed.

"Well, I guess that answers that question," Rachel mumbled back before turning off the light, shutting the door, and pouting as she walked to the living room.

* * *

Rachel made herself comfortable on the couch with a pillow and a blanket across her lap, with Elphie laying on top of her. She flicked on the television, hoping for something at least somewhat entertaining.

* * *

It was going on 9 when Rachel decided to sneak upstairs to see if Quinn was still asleep.

She was, along with snoring and drooling on her pillow.

With Quinn still out, she decidedto call Santana.

"This better be fucking good, Midget. It's fucking early."

"Santana, it's 9am, that is not early. Normally we've already been in school for over an hour by this point."

"Exactly, fucking early. Now what do you want? It better be something good or I'm hanging up and going back to sleep."

"I was just wondering if you would go shopping with me for Elphie. I wanted to get some things for her but I don't actually know what I need. I know she needs a collar and dishes, but I don't know what else."

"Isn't that what Quinn is for?"

"Well, Quinn is kind of still asleep."

"Wow. You managed to put Quinn into a sex coma?"

"Santana! Not that our sex life is any of your business, but no, I did not. She turned down my advances last night. Actually, I think she's a little mad at me right now. She said that she was tired and she kind of yelled at me and told me to get out of the bedroom."

"Damn, what did you do this time?"

"I may have woken her up at 6 when I was in a panic because Elphie wasn't in my room and I was freaked out."

"Good job. You do realize that she's a cat, right? They tend to disappear at times and run off to cause trouble."

"Yes, Quinn made that very clear this morning, thank you."

"Any time. So do I really have to go with you? Can't you managed on your own for a change? Quinn's not the only tired one. Brittany kept me up most of the night with thank yous for her presents. Damn, that was a good night."

"Really don't need to know the details, Santana. I get the point. Wait? Is she still with you? Did I wake you both up?"

"Rachel, if she was still here and you woke her up as well, trust me, you would know about it. I can guarantee that this conversation would have ended by now because her head would be between my-"

"Alright! Again, I don't need to know these things! Yes, I need you to come with me. I've never had a pet before and I don't know what I'm doing. I assume you do since I'm sure you've had plenty of time around Lord Tubbington."

"Fine. Give me a half hour and I'll be over. I don't suggest bringing the cat along."

"But Santana, I can't leave her here alone! Quinn is still asleep and what is she gets scared or lonely? She has to come. Plus, how am I going to pick out things for her unless she's there?"

"Rachel, she's a fucking cat. She'll be more than happy with whatever you get. I'm hanging up now. Must wash the sent of sweet lady lovin' off me. Don't want everyone getting jealous."

"But-"

"Bye, Midget!"

Rachel glared at the phone after hearing the click of Santana hanging up on her.

When Elphie meowed, Rachel looked down and the ball of fur on her lap. "I don't care what she says. You're coming with me. I can't leave you here alone with cranky Quinn. What if you need me?" Rachel told her.

Elphie meowed in agreement.

* * *

When Santana pulled into the drive, Rachel was ready to walk out the door with Elphie already zipped into her coat to keep her warm. Hiding her from Santana was just an added bonus.

* * *

The pair was half way to the pet store when a small meow rumbled out of Rachel's coat.

"That better not have been what I think that was."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Santana," Rachel told her as she tried to readjust Elphie under her coat, causing the kitten to meow again.

"Rachel, take her out of there before you suffocate the poor thing. I told you not to bring her. It's too cold out here for her."

Rachel unzipped her coat part of the way, allowing a furry head to pop out from her chest followed by another meow. "I just couldn't leave her home. I'm sorry. And since Quinn was still asleep I didn't want her to be alone."

"She would have been just fine for a little while. Plus, I'm sure if Q heard her crying she would have gotten up. You have no idea how many shelters she drug me to to find "the perfect kitten" for you. Trust me, she's not letting anything happen to that little one. Wait. You did tell her you were leaving, right? I really don't want to deal with the insanity if she wakes up and finds you gone."

"I left her a note. I didn't want to make her more angry by waking her up again."

"I'm sure she's not mad at you. She's always cranky when she's tired. Give her a break, she's under a lot of stress."

"What do you mean? She hasn't said anything to me about it."

"Don't worry about it. It's all good. We're here. Lets get this done and over with already. There are way too many people out for my liking today. You realize you're nuts for wanting to shop the day after Christmas, right? You know, the biggest fucking return day of the year."

"Language. Yes, Santana I'm well aware of what today is. I just figured there wouldn't be that many people at the pet store was all. We don't have to do this if you really don't want to." Rachel was starting to find herself feeling guilty for dragging Santana out of bed and couldn't stop her voice from slipping to a lower volume.

"Oh no, you don't get to pull this shit on me now. We're here, we're shopping. Now zip that kitten back in and get out of the damn car. Lets get this over with."

* * *

"Alright Midget, where do you want to start?"

"Well, I don't know exactly what I need. So maybe start with finding her a collar? Do they have ID tags?"

"Yep, by the registers. We'll get one when we leave. Please don't tell me you're going to make her wear a pink collar."

"Well she is a girl," Rachel answered while taking Elphie out of her coat while she directed Santana to grab a basket.

"Just because she's a girl doesn't mean that everything as to be pink, Berry."

"We're just going to have to see about that, won't we, Elphie?"

* * *

"Seriously? It's been 10 minutes. Just pick a freaking collar already!"

"I can't just pick one, Santana. It has to be the perfect one. What will happen if I choose the wrong one for her? Everything must be perfect."

"Odds are you'll be buying her a new one at some point anyway. Just pick one. It's not like the cat is going to think any less of you for not buying what you think is the "absolute perfect collar.""

"Oh! What about this one?" Rachel squeaked picking up a white collar with pink and green polka dots.

"It's great. It's perfect. Now can we move on?"

"Santana Lopez, Do you not understand what these colors mean?"

"Don't really care, but I'm sure you're going to tell me anyway," Santana groaned.

"Wicked! The pink for Galinda and green for Elphaba! Elphaba, as in the person Elphie is named for. And since she belongs to both Quinn and myself, it fits her perfectly. I've always seen myself as more of an Elphaba, and Quinn is definitely more of a Galinda type. Even though there was never a relationship between the two outside of friendship, it can still work. And, they did have that whole thing with Fiyero, which could be taken as being similar to what we went through with Finn-"

"Alright! That's enough, Midget. I get the point. It's perfect for her and it can represent both of you. Done. Now, grab the matching leash because I know you want to and heaven forbid you don't get it and I really don't want to hear that lecture, so get it and lets move on already. I really don't want to spend all day here."

* * *

It took another 45 minutes for Rachel to find everything she deemed necessary and the items that Santana pointed out she needed as well.

* * *

Now, standing in front of the engraving machine to make an ID tag, Rachel is debating if she should put "Elphie," "Elphie Berry," "Elphie Berry-Fabray," or "Elphie Fabray-Berry".

Santana on the other hand, is contemplating how hard she would have to bang her head against the metal side of the machine for it to knock her unconscious.

"Just fucking put "Elphie" and be done with it already!"

"Language in front of the innocent ears, Santana! I don't know if I should. What if she feels left out or she doesn't know she's part of the family because she doesn't have a last name. This is a big decision!"

"No, Rachel, it really isn't. She's not going to feel any different no matter what you decide to put on there. As long as "Elphie" is on there, nothing else matters that much. She'll know she belongs to you and Q-ball. Just pick already!" Santana groans before smacking her head on the machine.

"But-"

"No. That's it. Either pick something now or I'm doing it for you."

"I can't just pick one!"

"Yes you can! It's been 5 minutes of debating. I'm sick of being here and this place smells like a dog. I just want to go home already! Do it or I do it for you! Now!"

Rachel jumped at Santana's tone. She felt bad because Santana sounded really frustrated, but she couldn't decide what to put.

"Alright, that's it. Move."

Santana pushed Rachel over to the side and started to type.

"Santana! What are you doing! Stop right this instant! You can't do this."

"Oh, I did and it's done," she emphasized her point by touching the "ok" button and the machine came to life.

"You'll be paying for a new tag, Santana. That's not fair!"

"No, what's not fair is you making spend all morning here when I could still be in bed. You want have everything just perfect. Wake up! Nothing is ever perfect! This is real life. Deal with it. I'll be in the car when you're done." Santana shoved the cart containing Rachel's purchases out the door and stomping off towards her car.

Rachel let a tear drop fall onto Elphie's fur as the machine beeped, indicating the tag was done. Securing the kitten in her arm, Rachel leaned over and pick up the tag "Elphie Berry-Fabray" was printed on it along with both her's and Quinn's cell phone numbers.

"It's perfect," Rachel mumbled into Elphie's fur before clipping it onto the collar already in place around the kitten's neck. Taking a deep breath, Rachel zipped Elphie back into her coat before walking outside to find Santana for a very awkward ride home.

* * *

**AN: Yes, I finally am updating. Sorry! This is acting more as a filler, but was necessary to add into the next chapter. I promise drama and angst in the next update. Hopefully, said update doesn't take me almost a month this time.**

**As usual, thank you to dancelikeheya for being my beta. And the scary quick time she got this back to me. **

**And to sweetlilaud who has been nagging me constantly for the last week to get this up! You can thank her for forcing me to write!**


	5. Fight

**Fight**

The car ride home was spent in silence except for the low purring of Elphie as Rachel scratched her behind the ear, as she stared blankly out the window. She was scared for what she expected to happen when they got home. She's sure that there will be an argument that will most likely end with her in tears and Santana walking away from her.

Everyone always walks away.

* * *

The girls found themselves sitting on the living room couch after Rachel had put everything away and fed Elphie. She had a bed for the kitten, but decided against going to put it in her bedroom, instead it was on the living room floor for the time being. She didn't even check to see if Quinn was awake. That was another can of worms that she just wasn't ready to deal with.

Santana was the one to finally break the silence "You know when I call you Midget, I don't mean it in a bad way, right?"

"Yes, I am well aware of that fact. I never took it as being mean."

"Alright. Just had to check. Didn't want you getting the wrong idea or some shit like that."

"I would yell at you for language, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't even matter with you since it doesn't work anyway."

"Damn straight on that. Anyway, we needs to have us a little chat."

"About what now?"

"Listen, I know I apologized once for what happened with the whole Finn thing, but Rachel, I really am sorry that I walked away and blamed you for what happened. You didn't deserve that. I should have never left you and I feel like an asshole because I did. I know I should have listened to you. It's my fault Brittany left you alone. I should have just taken Quinn with me until we cooled down, but I should have fucking let Brittany stay. She basically begged me to but I told her that you were fine and the our priority was Quinn and not you."

"It's fine. I already accepted your apology. I know we all made mistakes when that happened. Lets just move on from it."

"But that's the thing. I know you think you're over it, but I think you're still holding a grudge about it. You're still pissed off."

"Not really. I mean, well, maybe I am. I don't want to be though. I expected you to get mad about it, but I never expected Quinn to leave me. I thought she would believe me. I thought that she would have given me a chance to explain but she didn't. She just got mad and left me. She left me like everyone else does."

"But she came back. She may have left, but she didn't abandon you. She came right back to you. I also may have tried to convince her otherwise, but she refused and left. She wanted to come back to you, Rachel."

"I didn't know."

"Rachel, Quinn loves you. Actually, it's kind of disgusting how much she basically drools over you. She's not going anywhere. I don't remember the last time I've seen Quinn as happy as she is now with you."

"I'm still scared that she's going to get sick of me like my dads did and leave me anyway."

"Rachel, you are going to have to learn to trust her. I'm telling you, I know Q, she's not going to run away. I mean, yea, she might get pissed or something and leave for a little bit, but she's not going to be gone forever. Hell, I wouldn't doubt if you do the same thing sometimes. It's going to happen, but you two need to learn to trust each other for this relationship to work out. Just look at B and I, we're doing great. I can't be completely wrong if even I can manage a good relationship."

"I know you're right. I just, have a hard time trusting anyone."

"But you are improving on it. You're sitting here talking to me right now. You've opened up to Q, B, and hell, even Shelby some. You're letting us in and that means something. It's a huge step that you shouldn't be over looking!"

"I know. I'm trying and that's all I can give you for now. I'll work on trusting Quinn more as well."

"That's my Midget. Also, what the fuck is with the need for everything to be so fucking perfect today? You're acting like if everything isn't, the world around you is going to collapse or something."

"I don't know. I want something to be perfect for a change."

"You do realize that trying to make everything perfect isn't going to just magically fix everything?"

"Yes. I was hoping that maybe just something would go right for a change for me. Plus, I felt that Elphie deserves to have a perfect life since mine will never be that way."

"You don't know that. It'll get better."

"You don't know that either. What if it never gets better? What if everything stays messed up forever?"

"Like what?"

"Like my dads not being around, all of the problems when it comes to Shelby, all of the issues with Quinn and myself, or even just me in general. What if I never feel better? What if I keep doing this to myself?"

"Cutting?"

"Yes."

"Have you?"

"No, not in a little while at least."

"But you want to?"

Rachel was silent and wouldn't meet Santana's gaze.

"Rach, you can tell me. Besides, the silence gave you away."

"I've thought about it. Probably more then I should have."

"That's normal. You're going to think about it a lot probably. And actually, you will end up doing it more than you think, and that's fine too. It's going to happen and that's the reality of it. You aren't going to get better overnight. Don't beat yourself up when you don't. Accept that it happened and work on moving forward. We need to find ways of distracting you and getting you something else to focus on."

"Quinn and I talked about that a while ago and decided on singing, but that obviously didn't really work. I'm not sure on what else I could do though."

"Well, you've got a cat now, so she would be a good place to start. Pet her, play with her, talk to her, anything that distracts your mind from going there. Since singing isn't working, maybe just listening to music, writing, or drawing could work. If you need the sting or the pain type of release, hold ice or snap a rubber band on your wrist."

"What did you use?"

"Exercise more than anything because of the Cheerios. It was enough for me to get my release that way. You know, the physical exhaustion part. You can use the exercise way, but you need to make sure you are eating enough. Q told me the doctor said you were underweight. So, I think until you gain it back and fix your eating habits, stay clear of the exercise fix. I snapped the rubber band as well. Talking is always good too, you know."

"I know, but it's just hard for me to do that. I'm learning but it's still hard. Maybe I can try the rubber band thing and playing with Elphie. Maybe work on the talking thing as well."

"I think that sounds like a good start."

Neither of the girls heard Quinn walk down the stairs at this moment or realized that she was now standing in the doorway watching them.

"Thank you, Santana. It's nice to have someone to talk to that gets it. Quinn doesn't and I don't want to talk to her because I'm afraid of what she'll say to me. I'm scared that she'll tell me to just get over it and that it's not that hard to give it up. I know that she hasn't actually said that, but I'm just scared that she's going to get sick of all of this."

"Running off to Santana now, Rachel?"

"Quinn, when did you come down here?"

"Oh I've been down here long enough to hear that I'm basically useless to you."

"Quinn, what are you walking about? I never said that."

"You said that you don't want to talk to me. That I couldn't possibly understand. Well you know what, Rachel? You're not the only one in pain here. You're not the only one with problems. You're not the only one who needs someone to talk to!"

"Oh, Quinn."

"Don't "oh, Quinn" me, Rachel. You're always so concerned with yourself. Everything is always Rachel, Rachel, Rachel. Dammit Rachel, what about me? What about me needing someone? Where's my help?" Quinn was a furious mix of anger and betrayal. She was out for vengeance, and unfortunately for Rachel, she was the intended target.

"Quinn, I never meant to make you feel that way. I didn't realize that it was hurting you."

"You haven't even bothered to ask me if I had something that I needed to talk about or if I was doing alright. You're supposed to care about me and it feels like you've been sticking me on the back burner for yourself."

"I'm sorry, Quinn. Why didn't you say something to me? You could have told me something was wrong."

"And could have asked me!"

"I didn't realize-"

"That's right, you didn't realize. You didn't think about anyone but yourself!"

"Quinn-"

"I can't take this, Rachel. I fucking need you too and you just blow me off and leave me to fend for myself. I've tried to do everything I could to help you and I'm getting nothing in return. It's always about you."

Rachel couldn't meet Quinn's stare. Instead, her eyes flicked down to the carpet as tears spilled over. Quinn was right and she knew it. It had been about her a lot lately and she really hadn't been paying as much attention to Quinn as she should have. But honesty, she didn't feel like she was neglecting her in anyway. Quinn hadn't seemed much different to her. Her attitude seemed the same and she was acting the same. Well, there may have been an exception here and there but it wasn't anything that she thought was a big deal. She did notice when Quinn's smile wasn't quit right or when her laugh was a little too fake. "Dammit, Rachel. Why didn't you realize this sooner?" she scolded herself.

"See, you even know it, Rachel! Why couldn't you have cared about me? Why couldn't you have just asked?" Quinn's anger was slowly diminishing into sadness as she yelled.

"Do you two have any idea how petty and pathetic you sound?" Santana interrupted. "Quinn, you're bitching because Rachel didn't give you enough attention, but yet you never bothered to say anything to her that something was wrong. You can't get pissed at someone for something they didn't realize was going on. And you, Rachel, you don't get to feel guilty about this. This is not your fault. You don't get to blame yourself and get depressed about it. Yes, maybe you could have noticed something wasn't quit right with Quinn, but it's not your fault that you didn't. Lets be honest, Quinnie here likes to bottle everything up until she explodes. Not like you're much better, Midget. The two of you need to get your shit together in your own lives before you can try to help the other. You're both so fucked up and you need to deal with it. Stop fucking running away from everything and fucking fix it already! Hell, maybe you two shouldn't even be together right now. If you can't deal with your damn selves, how the fuck to you expect to have a relationship that actually works?"

Rachel and Quinn stared at Santana in shock.

"Maybe Santana is correct."

"Oh, so you do want to break up, Rachel? One suggestion of it and it's all over?"

"I don't want to break up, Quinn. But what she said is true. How can we expect us to work out if we can't even handle ourselves?"

"You just want an easy escape."

"I want no such thing! I want us to stay in a relationship. I don't want to lose you. I can't lose you. I just don't know if it's a good idea."

"Yea, whatever."

"Knock it off, Quinn. Stop being such a bitch. She's trying to tell you what she feels and you're making her feel like shit for it. I never said that you two needed to break up. I only meant you guys may be better off without the stress of a relationship on top of everything. If you don't want to, don't. It's that simple."

"I don't want us to break up, Quinn. I just want to do what's best for us."

Quinn took a deep breath, trying to calm down before answering "I don't want us to either. I don't know if I can get myself together if I'm trying to get over us. I love you so much, Rachel. I think, maybe we should try without breaking up. I think if we did, it would end up adding more stress for us."

"I love you, too and I agree. Besides, if we decide that it's not working out that way, we can always change it."

"Alright, now that you two have that worked out, stop blaming each other or yourselves for shit! You're both new at this relationship thing and have a shit load of personal issues, stop placing the blame. You two need to fucking be there for each other without hurting yourself in the process. When are you guys starting therapy?"

"We decided after the holidays. Shelby already has a therapist and appointments set up for us."

"Together or separate?"

"Separate. We figured it would be better that way. Then if we want to talk to the other about our session, we can. It'll still give us some privacy that way. Not that we're trying to keep secrets from each other."

"Well, since you seem to have that planned out, next order of business. Rachel, you said you were going to work on talking to Quinn. Quinn, I think you need to do the same. You two are going to fail horribly at this if you don't learn to start talking to each other. No more of this walking around on egg shells shit. If you're pissed at each other about something, fucking say it! Stop holding all of this shit in because it's just going to fuck the two of you up even more. The more shit you hold in and bottle up, the worse you're going to blow up. Just look at what happened a little bit ago. Fucking talk to one another! Get that shit out in the open and be done with it!"

Rachel sighed and looked at Quinn "She's right. We have so many problems and we don't talk about anything any more. Quinn, we need to fix this."

"We will. I don't know how, but we are going to make this, make us, right again."

"And with that, I'm outty. You two better not kill each other or I'm bringing your asses back just to slap you and off you again. I gots to go sees my baby now. Adios, bitches."

* * *

"What's going on with you Quinn? Why are you so angry and upset?"

"I don't know."

"Quinn. how do you expect me to talk to you when you won't even talk to me?"

"I don't like talking about feelings. Everything was always "Bottle it up and act like like you're perfectly fine because Fabray's don't have problems. Our lives are perfect and we do not have issues." Talking about stuff never happened in my house. Everything was always just perfect and nothing less was acceptable."

"But you're not at your house any longer. Talking is a good thing for you to do. I don't expect you to be perfect. That would be incredibly unfair considering I'm far from it as well. Just talk about something."

"I don't really know what's wrong. All I know is that I'm frustrated with myself and I don't know why. I don't feel like me anymore. It's like I don't know who I am anymore. I feel like this whole different person and I don't know if what I feel is right or wrong anymore. I'm scared."

"Why are you scared?"

"Of becoming someone that you won't want any longer. That I'll change into this person that you can't stand to be around any longer and I'll be tossed back on the street again."

"Quinn, I will never throw you out. That's not even a possibility so don't worry about it. As far as you feel different, that's normal. This is an entirely different life for you. It's understandable that you're going to change a bit since you're in a different environment that's completely new to you. Everyone changes in some way when something new happens to them. Quinn, you had a big change. You're dating me, you came out to your parents, you got kicked out from your home again, and were basically disowned from your family. No one would feel the same after going through all of that. I don't expect you to just be alright with everything that happened. It will take time for you to adjust and figure out who you are now. I'll be right here as you do. I'm not going anywhere and I'm certainly not going to make you leave. This is your home now, even if it's not the best situation. I know I'm not the best person since I have my own issues, but you do still have me. I'm sure you would have Santana and Brittany any time you need them as well. I don't care if you go spend time with them. They are your friends. Go see them and go out with them. You don't have to feel guilty about wanting to do that."

"But I don't want to leave you alone if I did go with them."

"Quinn, I can be by myself for a little while. It's not going to hurt me if I am."

"I'll think about it, alright? I can't promise it, but I will consider it."

"I'll take that, I guess."

"How about you? What did you and Santana talk about? You don't have to tell me if you can't or don't want to."

"I was kind of a pain when we went to the pet store earlier. I was so concerned with everything being perfect for Elphie that I basically acted like everything was going to fall apart if it wasn't. I want her to have a great life since mine isn't."

"She will have a great life because she's yours. I know you will do whatever it takes for that to happen. She'll also forgive you if something isn't exactly like you think it should be. Honestly, as long as she has you in her life, she'll be happy. Anything else?"

"I.. I want to cut again. I've wanted to for a couple of days now. We talked about ways to help me deal with the urges."

"Oh Rach, why didn't you tell me?"

"I was too scared. I didn't want to add more problems for you. I knew you probably already had so much going on in your mind that I didn't want to give you something else. I figured that if I pretended that I was ok, you would think I was and you wouldn't worry."

"I'm always going to worry about you. Nothing is going to change that. I love you. Caring and worrying about you comes along with that. I don't want you to hide from me, Rachel. If you need to talk to me, please do. It doesn't matter how bad of a day I'm having, if you need me, you need to talk to me. Santana is right, holding it in isn't going to do any good. We have to talk to each other, alright?"

"I know. It's just hard for me. I'm not used to having someone who actually cares about me so I still don't know how I'm supposed to act or what I'm supposed to do."

"I'm not asking you to act or do anything differently. All I want you to do is talk to me or even talk to Santana like you did today. I'm sorry I freaked out on you earlier. You didn't deserve that. You really didn't deserve me getting mad because you talked to her when I suggested a while ago that you should talk to her when you can't talk to me. I'm so sorry. I think I need to be a better person for you. You deserve someone better for you."

"No one is better for me than you are, Quinn. It's you that I love, not anyone else so stop that. You don't get to feel like you're not good enough. You are good enough. Hell, you are more than good enough. You're the one that I want. I don't care that we have all of these problems in our lives right now. We will get over them and we will work everything out. In the end it will all be worth it. We will make it, Quinn. We will be alright. We will get through all of this, together."

* * *

Later that evening, the girls were sitting on opposite sides of the couch as they watched RENT, Quinn's choice, while Elphie was asleep in her bed.

Quinn heard a light snapping sound coming from her left side. Curious, she looked over towards Rachel. The brunette was focused on the move, but was snapping a rubber band against her wrist ever few seconds or so. Quinn simply shrugged and went back to watching the movie.

*Snap*

*Snap*

*Snap*

After listening to the snapping every couple of seconds for the last 10 minutes, it was really starting to get on Quinn's nerves.

*Snap*

Turing her head once again, she stared at Rachel, and then smiled. The girl looked adorable. Her faced was a mixture of pouting with her lips and concentrating with her furrowed eyebrows. As she continued to snap that damn rubber band. Quinn could stop just looking at her.

*Snap*

Five minutes later, she was sure that she looked insane by this point. She probably looked like a creeper with her smile and raised eyebrow as she continued to watch.

*Snap*

"I'm going to kill her. I'm going to take that rubber band and fling it across the room. I'm going to shove that thing where it should never go. I can't take the snapping any longer!" Quinn told herself.

*Snap*

"Okay! That's it! Enough!" Quinn lunged towards Rachel and grabbed her arm, yanking the band off in the process.

"Quinn! What are you doing? Give that back to me!"

"No! Do you know how annoying it is to listen to you snap this stupid thing? It's driving me mad!"

"But Quinn!"

"Nope! Here, how do you like it?" Quinn snapped the band lightly against Rachel's thigh. *Snap* *Snap* "Kind of annoying, isn't it?" *Snap* *Snap* "Give in yet? I can keep going if you'd like." *Snap*

"No! Quinn, stop! I'm sorry!" Rachel managed to squeak out between giggles. Quinn had her pinned to the couch as she continued to snap the band against her body. "I give! I give! You win! Stop!" *Snort*

Quinn finally stopped when Rachel snorted and joined Rachel in a mixture of laughter and snorting.

* * *

When Quinn started to realize how completely insane they were starting to sound, she managed to get a hold of herself and stop laughing.

It took Rachel another minute or two before she stopped as well.

Quinn was hovering over Rachel, who was now laying flat on the couch.

The girls stared into each other's eyes as Quinn leaned down closer to Rachel. The pair's lips puckered and eyes slipped closed.

The girls were only inches from each other when a loud "meow" and a ball of fluff landed directly on Rachel's chest, causing two pairs of eyes to shoot open and stare in shock at Elphie.

The cat looked awfully proud of herself for what she just did. She seriously had a smug look on her face, which she directed straight at Quinn.

Quinn pushed herself up, eyes never leaving contact with Elphie's as she did so until she was sitting at the end of Rachel's curled legs. "I can't believe she did that. I just go cock blocked by a cat! What the hell? And why does she keep looking at me like that? It's getting really creepy. She's like, not even blinking. Rachel, I think that cat is possessed or something."

"Oh Quinn, don't be dramatic. She probably just wanted in on the fun is all. Oh, and I believe the more correct term would be "Beaver Damming"."

"I don't even want to know how you know that, Rach. Anyway, why is she looking at me like that? It's like she's looking into my soul. She's all proud of herself for what she just did!"

Rachel just laughed.

"It's not funny! She's not looking at you like that! I don't think she likes me."

"She likes you just fine." Rachel sat up, bringing Elphie with her and setting her on Quinn's lap where the kitten immediately began to purr and rub against Quinn's stomach.

"Okay, that's still creepy. I still maintain that she's possessed. Or she just really doesn't want me to kiss you."

Rachel rolled her eyes before leaning up and kissing Quinn before pulling away.

The kitten never stopped her motions.

"See Quinn, she just wanted to be part of the fun. Now, lets go back to the movie, shall we?"

Rachel laid back against the arm of the couch, motioning for Quinn to turn and lay against her, which she happily did.

When Rachel turned her attention back to the movie, Elphie, who was now laying on Quinn's chest as the girl scratched her, stared at Quinn, giving what Quinn decided was the most evil expression she has ever seen come from an animal, before the kitten yawned and fell asleep.

Quinn stared in disbelief of what had just taken place. "I will be keeping my eye on you," Quinn mumbled to the cat.

* * *

"Rachel, Quinn, we're home!"

* * *

**A/N: This chapter was not checked over by a beta, so please forgive my errors! That being said, I hope there are still people out there interested in this story! I have big plans for the next chapter, so please stay tuned! **

**Oh, and Sweetlilaud wants fruit baskets for forcing me to write and for helping me with ideas. Do as you wish with that one.**


	6. New Start

**New Start**

_"Rachel, Quinn, we're home!"_

* * *

"Rach, what are they doing here?"

"I have no idea."

Hiram soon stepped into the living room and smiled at the pair. "Hi, girls. What do you have there, Quinn?" he asked pointing to Elphie, who had awoken with the commotion, and was now giving her best kitty glare at him.

"This is Elphie. Quinn got her for me for my birthday."

"I just figured it would be good for her to have a pet. You know, something to take care of." Quinn supplied.

"I think that's an excellent idea, Quinn!" Hiram walked over to the pair, and reached out to pet the kitten. Except, Elphie had other ideas. She immediately backed farther into Quinn's body, letting out a low growl as she tried to hide from this strange man whom she didn't like.

"Sorry daddy, she doesn't seem to like people very much. It took her a bit to warm up to Quinn."

"Hey girls. Oh look! What do we have here?" Leroy walked strait over to the couch and stuck his hand to touch the kitten. This time, Elphie used a paw to swat at the hand coming towards her face. "Ok, don't touch the cat. Got it."

"Sorry, she just doesn't seem to like people she doesn't know. What are you guys doing home? I thought you weren't going to be back for a few more weeks?"

"Well, sweetheart, plans change, work changes, life changes. Anyway, we'll be home for a little while we believe. Which mean, family bonding time!" Leroy replied. "Now, we're going to head off to bed. Nighty night girls, demon cat."

Quinn waited until she heard the men shut their bedroom door before whispering "What was that?"

"I have no idea."

Elphie meowed as well, before settling herself against Rachel's shoulder and staring at the staircase, almost as if she was protecting Rachel from the two strange men.

* * *

Quinn awoke during the night and reached towards Rachel to pull her closer, only to find she wasn't there and her side of their bed was cold. She peaked her eyes open and noticed that no, Rachel really wasn't there just out of reach.

Rolling over as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she was able to make out a figure sitting next to the window. She could see from the bed that it was snowing rather heavily.

As her eyes focused, Quinn could see Elphie on her back in Rachel's lap as the girl rubbed her belly. Rachel seemed to be zoned out as she stared. She wished she knew what was running through the girl's mind.

Quietly, not wanting to scare Rachel, Quinn padded her way over to the window. Rachel glanced at her in acknowledgement then resumed her staring. Quinn bent down and kissed the side of Rachel's head before having the girl sit up so she could slide in behind her. She felt Rachel's body begin to relax as she pulled the smaller girl flush against her chest.

"What's going through that pretty little head of yours?" Quinn cooed.

"Just thinking."

"Do you want to tell me what you're thinking about?"

"Just... About my dads mostly. I want to know what they're doing here. I know he said things change, but that doesn't help explain anything. Am I going to wake up in the morning to another note and them being gone again? Maybe they will actually be here for a couple of days, just long enough for everything to fall back to the way it used to be, only for them to take off again? Maybe this is the last time they'll be here for good and are leaving forever? I'm just so confused, Quinn. I don't know what to think or feel right now," Rachel sniffled.

"You don't have to feel anything you're not ready to. You don't have to expect the best or the worse in this. All you have to do is handle this as it comes. We don't know what's going to happen, and stressing over it will not make it better. It is going to just make you feel worse about the situation. Lets just take it as it comes, alright?"

"Yea, I guess you're right. I love them, Quinn, and I just really don't want them to leave again. I want them here," Rachel couldn't hold back a sob at the admission.

"Then tell them, Rachel. Tell them how much you love them and how much you miss them. They don't know if you don't speak up. You need to start talking, hunnie. I'll be there every step of the way, if that's what you want."

"I.. I don't know yet. I don't think I can tell them yet."

"That's ok too. Just, please tell them one day. I hate seeing you hurting over this." Quinn leaned down and placed her lips to the top of Rachel's head, humming quietly.

"It's beautiful outside, isn't it?" Rachel asked.

"Honestly, I've never really been that fond of the snow. I mean yea, it's pretty and all, but I hate driving in it."

"Well, I guess it's a good thing that you have me to chauffeur you around, isn't it?" Rachel giggled.

"I love you, Rachel."

"I love you too, Quinn."

The girls sat and watched the snow fall for another half hour before Quinn felt Rachel start to nod off in her arms. "Come on, Rach, lets go to bed."

"No, I'm awake. It's fine."

"We need to sleep. We can watch the snow fall tomorrow, alright?"

"Do you promise?"

"I promise as long as it's still snowing. Sit up for me." Quinn wiggled her way out from behind Rachel and reached down to scoop up Elphie, who, surprisingly, didn't even wake up when Quinn moved her over to one of Rachel's pillows. Rachel was picked up next, earning her a tired smile from the sleepy diva.

"My night it shining, well, Snoopy pajamas."

"Hey, don't mock the Snoopy pj's," Quinn stuck her tongue out before dropping Rachel onto the bed, earning her a pitiful sleepy glare. She crawled into her side of the bed, opening her arm for Rachel to snuggle into her body. "Get some sleep, sweetheart."

"As long as you're holding me."

"Always."

* * *

The next morning Quinn groaned as she began to stir, the smell of food and coffee drifting through the door. She rolled over and threw her arm around Rachel's body, pulling herself closer. Nuzzling her face into Rachel's mass of hair, she felt something that definitely wasn't part of Rachel. Peaking her eyes open, she realized that she was partly rubbing against Elphie's head, which was facing her. The kitten was fast asleep on Rachel's head and purring lowly. Quinn couldn't help but smile before shutting her eyes and snuggling back into the warm body she was curled up to.

"I smell food," Rachel mumbled.

"I think your dads cooked breakfast."

"What time is it?"

"A little after eight. Do you want to get up or lay here longer?"

"Get up while the food is still warm. Daddy's pancakes are good but kind of suck when they're reheated." Rachel pulled away and stretched before standing up. "Come on, sleepy head," she cooed.

"Alright, I'm up. Just, let me go to the bathroom first. I'll meet you downstairs, ok?"

"Ok, just don't take too long, please."

"I'll be quick. I promise."

* * *

Quinn rolled out of bed and used the bathroom before grabbing her phone and sitting down.

To Santana: Hey, Rachel's dads are back. They came back last night. No idea why but you might not want to be here for a little while. Don't know how they would react knowing you're here constantly.

To Quinn: Alright. I was gunna hang with B and go home for a while anyway. Let me know if I need to kick some ass.

To Santana: Will do. Thanks, S.

Quinn let out a sigh, steeling herself to make her way downstairs to join the rest, when she felt a tug on her neck. "What the heck?" Standing up, she made her way to the mirror and turned around. She couldn't help rolling her eyes when she noticed the pair of furry ears sticking out of her hood. "You really are one strange cat, Elphie." She flipped in the camera on her phone and snapped a picture for Santana.

To Santana: I'm starting to wonder about her.

To Quinn: Eh, at least she's cute, makes the insane more tolerable.

* * *

Quinn walked into the kitchen, letting the smell of pancakes, bacon, and fresh coffee waft over her. The Berry men were both fussing about the stove while Rachel was bent over filling Elphie's food and water dishes.

Rachel was the first to notice her presence. "Quinn, have you seen Elphie?"

In reply, Quinn simply walked closer to Rachel and turned around.

"Seriously? Did you put her in there or something?"

"Nope, she jumped in on her own. Feel free to take her out."

"Well, I would but she's sound asleep and looks so cute. I really don't want to disturb her."

"Fine. She can stay there. I can't promise I'll remember she's there after a while."

"You will not lay on Elphie, Quinn Fabray!" Rachel chastised her.

"Yes, dear."

"If you two are done now, breakfast is ready," Hiram interrupted the pair, setting down two full plates of food. "Real bacon for Quinn, facon for Rachel."

Quinn squealed at little at the mention of bacon, receiving a light swat from her hood. "Sorry, Elphie"

* * *

"So girls, what are your plans for the day?" Leroy asked after the food had been devoured and the plates were pushed away.

"We haven't decided yet. Usually we're pretty spontaneous when it comes to plans. Lately, we haven't really been doing much but hanging out here." Rachel told him.

"Well, in that case I have an idea. Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Hiram?"

"Why yes, Leroy. I think that I am. Why don't you two go get ready for the day and we'll all meet down here, say 9:30?"

* * *

"Hey Rach, what are they planning?" Quinn asked while they were getting dressed."

"Not sure really. Knowing them, probably something that involves shopping. I think they like to shop more than anyone I've even met. After that? I have no idea what they could be up to."

* * *

At 9:30, everyone was downstairs and ready to go.

"No skirt or sweater, Rach?" Hiram looked at Rachel curiously.

"No, not so much any more. Quinn kind of changed all of that and helped me find some other clothes instead."

"Hey Quinn, thanks!" Hiram gave a thumbs up. "We have no idea where Rachel got the idea that it was a good look for her."

Rachel huffed in reply "Hey, you two thought it was cute when I was little."

"Yes, when you were little. Not as a preteen and for sure not as a teenager. No matter how we tried to convince you otherwise, you always insisted on those horrid things."

"Yes, well now I've seen the error of my ways and we can all stop making fun of me now for it." Rachel stuck her tongue out at him, earning herself a hug in the process.

"Sorry, princess, no more making fun, I promise. Now, shall we get going?"

They piled into the car, after putting Elphie back in the house when she tried to sneak out with them.

* * *

Quinn was sure she was going to die. Or maybe her arms and legs were going to fall off. She wasn't sure at this point. They had been shopping for five hours now and had made multiple trips back to the car to unload bags. Both her and Rachel basically had completely new wardrobes at this point and the Berry's weren't too far behind them.

"Raaaach, I don't know how much more I can take of this. Are they trying to buy out the mall or something?"

Rachel giggled "You would think that the Cheerio could keep up with them. I don't know the last time I've seen them like this."

"I think I'm going to fall over from exhaustion and hunger. They haven't even stopped to eat!"

"Hang on. Hey, food break is necessary for some of us! We're not all superhuman shoppers like you two!" Rachel yelled at them across the parking lot. They were already on their way back inside while her and Quinn drug themselves along behind.

"Hiram, we forgot to eat again," Leroy laughed.

The men turned around and looked at the two exhausted girls behind them. "Yikes. Sorry you two! Let's get out of here and go have an early dinner then go home. Sound good?" Hiram asked.

The girls nodded as they leaned against each other for support to stay upright.

* * *

When they made it home after a stop at one of the nicest restaurants in Lima, Rachel decided it was time for a little more fun.

Quinn whipped her head around when she felt something hit her shoulder. Rachel was standing in the yard with a smile on her face, failing miserably at trying to look innocent. Narrowing her eyes, she bent over to make a snowball of her own, except when she looked up, Rachel was no where to be seen.

Having watched the entire thing, Hiram leaned over "She's on the side of the house. Be careful because I'm sure she's already got ammo by now. If you sneak around the back she'll probably never know you're coming."

Sure enough, having made her way around the yard, she spotted Rachel standing in wait with a pile of snowballs next to her. Grinning like the Cheshire Cat, Quinn pelted Rachel with three snowballs from behind before she took off running back to the front of the house.

She didn't take into account how fast Rachel was because seconds after she made it, what she thought was safely, upfront, she was tackled to the ground.

"Think you're being coy, sneaking up on me from behind?" Rachel whispered into her ear, "Well, guess what?" Quinn squealed when a pile of snow landed on the back of her neck.

By the time she brushed the snow off and stood up, Rachel was helping her dads carry bags to the house.

Hiram was the first to notice Quinn's glare. Getting Quinn's attention, he pointed to Rachel and then his stomach. Quinn nodded in understanding.

Quinn watched as Hiram picked Rachel up bridal style as she got a hand full of snow and starting walking towards them.

Rachel screamed when she noticed Quinn and began to struggle to get free. Unfortunately for her, Hiram was much stronger and had a good grip.

She screamed again when Quinn shoved the snow inside of her shirt and rubbed it over her stomach.

"I'm going to kill you, Quinn! That's so cold!"

"Don't start what you can't finish, Rachy-poo."

They called it a truce after Quinn got a dose of snow down the back of her pants and Rachel got a face full in return.

* * *

When Leroy finally opened the door, they were met by a meowing Elphie who didn't look too pleased about being left alone for so long.

"Oh shush, you're fine." Quinn told her.

Elphie smacked her leg before jumping onto Rachel.

"Ignore mean old Quinn, Elphie. I'll protect you from her. Don't you worry one bit."

Quinn stuck her tongue out at them.

* * *

The rest of the afternoon was spent putting away their things from shopping before they all settled in the living room for movies and popcorn.

* * *

At 8:30, Hiram and Leroy excused themselves to the basement, deciding to give the girls some alone time.

"Quinn, it feels really weird having them here. Don't get me wrong, today was amazing. It's nice to have them home. But, I just wish I knew what they were up to."

"Me too."

"I'm scared of what's going to happen. Of what they're going to do."

"Well, what ever does end up happening, I'll be right here. I'm not going anywhere. We are in this together."

"Thank you."

"Besides, I'm pretty sure Elphie would kick some ass if need be."

Rachel giggled "I think you're right on that one. She really doesn't seem to like them very much."

"I know. It's kind of strange considering she completely loved Santana when we went to get her."

"Yea, but Santana has proven to not be all that bad, so I guess she was right about her. Speaking of, where did you get Elphie anyway?"

"At a shelter a few towns over. It was like the 4th place we went to. She was in a cage with some other kittens and was shaking, huddled up in the back corner. I guess someone had found her in a dumpster. When I asked to see her, the lady told me I was nuts because that specific cat hated everyone and would hiss and strike at anyone or other kittens that went near her. Santana actually reached in and got her because I was kind of afraid to. She let Santana pick her up without any issue and stopped shaking once she had her. She was more stand-offish towards me, but never tried to swat me. I don't know, when I looked at her I knew she was the right choice. She was just so little and scared I couldn't leave her there. Santana took her home that night because I refused to let her stay and be terrified for another minute."

Rachel lunched herself onto Quinn's lap, throwing her arms around her middle. "Thank you, Quinn. Thank you for saving her. I love her so much. Thank you for not letting her suffer there."

"You're welcome. I knew you would love her as soon as you saw her. She won me over with her little white paws, half black half orange face, and those bright blue eyes."

"You know she has a heart under her chin, right?"

"No?"

"Yea, she's white underneath with an orange heart. I actually figured that's why you picked her."

"Oh, now I wish I'd known about that. I guess that just makes her even more perfect, doesn't it?"

"I guess it does."

Quinn glanced outside and noticed the snow falling against the streetlights. "Hey, I'll be right back. Stay here, alright?"

"Ok, don't be long."

"I wont. Promise."

Quinn made her way into the kitchen in search of the last two slices of what was Rachel's birthday cake and hot chocolate. She promised Rachel they would watch the snow, so that was what they were going to do.

Mugs of piping hot coco and cake were placed on the tray when Quinn noticed voices coming from the basement.

"Are you sure about this, Leroy? What is Rachel going to think?"

"Rachel will be fine. Besides, Quinn is here so it's not like she's going to be completely alone. After today, I'm even more sure."

"Yea, but what about after? How do you think they will both adjust?"

"It'll be different for them for a while. That I'm sure of. Hopefully they will get used to it fairly quickly. It doesn't seem like they've had much trouble so far."

Quinn couldn't stand to listen any longer. "What the fuck? They are leaving again? For good? It's bad enough that they are never here, but now this? What's Rachel going to think? How am I supposed to tell her?" Quinn was broken from her thoughts by a soft pawing against her leg and a meow. "Oh, Elph, what are we going to do?" she asked the kitten as she picked her up.

Elphie gave her a quiet growl before jumping to the counter and sitting on the tray.

"I see how it is. You just use me for the free rides. I'm still on to you, cat." She grabbed the tray and walked to the living room, motioning for Rachel to follow her, and walked upstairs to their room. The tray was placed on a small table and moved next to the window seat while Elphie hopped off.

Rachel, seeming to understand what was taking place, shut the door and found pajamas for both of them.

Once they had changed, they took the same places they had been in the night before, Rachel leaning against Quinn with Elphie in her lap as they watched the snow fall.


	7. Gone?

**Gone?**

The next few days passed uneventfully, and the four of them were beginning to feel like a real family. Even Elphie was becoming more comfortable around Hiram and Leroy, and had gone as far as letting them pet her a few times while Rachel was holding her. The days were filled with plenty of family meals, talking, and laughter. Quinn even noticed that Rachel wasn't faking her happiness as often as her dads continued to stay home.

It was finally Sunday, and with the girls having to return to school the next day, they were out spending their last day of freedom with Santana and Brittany. Hiram and Leroy were home making the final arrangements they would need for work. Elphie was currently watching them from her hiding place under the living room couch among her collection of toys, scraps of paper, and other little oddities that she had found that she could play with. The ringing of the doorbell startled her, causing her to drop her stuffed mouse. She decided to follow Hiram as he made his way to the door and poked her head around the corner. She was confused when she saw her Rachel, but not actually her Rachel at the door.

"Shelby. What can I help you with?"

"I'm here to drop something off to Rachel."

"You do remember you signed a contract? No contact with Rachel until she's 18."

"So, Rachel didn't tell you we've had contact since earlier this year? Or that we've been slowly getting to know each other the last few weeks? Well, it's not like you are ever really here to talk to her anyway."

"I beg your pardon?"

"You heard me. It's not like you're hiding something. I know the two of you are never here and you leave Rachel and now Quinn to fend for themselves!" Shelby began to yell.

"I'll have you know, Shelby, we are here plenty and plan to be here a lot more." Hiram was trying his best to stay calm and keep his voice down.

"Fat chance. I'll wait until I actually see that happen. Honestly, I should sue the two of you for custody of the girls. Get you for being neglectful parents. I would probably win."

"No, you would not. And you seem to have no real idea what you're talking about or even anything to base your accusations on. You know nothing about our family. Besides? What do you know about being a parent? We offered you a chance to be a part of Rachel's life but you're the one who said no and that you only wanted Broadway. We made the contract to protect our daughter. Ours as in and Leroy and myself. You walked away, Shelby."

"Well, I guess we'll just see about that, won't we?" With that, Shelby turned and walked back to her car, not looking back.

Leroy had listened in from the hallway when the yelling began.

"Come on, Hiram, lets sit down."

"Leroy, what are we going to do if she does try to get the girls? I don't want to lose either of them. That's why we're doing all of this! For them!"

"They aren't going anywhere. Honestly, I think once they know what we're doing, they will understand even more. Everything will work out and be fine. We will not lose either of them. I promise you, Hi."

Both men were shocked when Elphie jumped onto Hiram's lap and began to purr and rub her head against his stomach.

* * *

"Hey Rach, can we talk to you for a minute?" Leroy called.

"Yes?"

"Listen, Shelby cam by earlier. She said she wanted to drop something off for you."

"Well, I don't know what it could be."

"How long has Shelby been coming around?" Hiram asked her.

"She hasn't really been."

"How long, Rach? We're not mad, we just want to know."

"Not long. Only a few weeks. She adopted Quinn's baby earlier this year. She got me to find her but then she basically told me that I wasn't good enough and wasn't what she wanted and she adopted Beth to replace me. She's been coming around a little bit. She's tried to apologize for what she did but I still can't completely forgive her. She said that she knows what she did was wrong but it's not that easy for me to forgive her."

"I'm sorry for what she's done, Rach. Thank you for telling us the truth, baby. That's all we wanted." Leroy told her.

"Am I in trouble?"

"No sweetheart, not at all. Everything is just fine." Hiram reassured before hugging her.

* * *

Monday morning, Rachel was up well before Quinn. She managed her elliptical routine and a shower before she woke Quinn and headed downstairs, Elphie following close behind meowing for food.

It was strange for her to not see her dads in the kitchen making breakfast, but then realizing it was 6:30 in the morning, she couldn't blame them for still being asleep.

* * *

An hour later, the girls were out the door, leaving Elphie curled up on the bed fast asleep in the warm blankets.

* * *

When the door shut later in the afternoon, it woke Elphie from her nap, much to her displeasure.

After a nice long drink of cold water with a large helping of food, she decided it was time to investigate the counter. She had only been up there once, since the other times she tried she was put on the floor and told some "no" word.

The plan seemed to be pointless until she spotted a piece of paper that was moving slightly in the breeze of the heater. Bingo! New toy!

It started simply enough, a few light pats and taps here and there, eventually moving the paper to the edge of the counter until one final swat knocks it off and she watches it flutter to the floor.

Elphie jumps off the counter as soon as the paper hits the floor, this time getting aggressive, acting like the paper insulted her. Rearing back on her hind legs, she pounces down on the paper and sends it flying across the kitchen to the hallway. Running after it, she continues to chase it down the hall, batting and pushing it along the way until it hits the living room carpet and stops moving so easily.

The rough playing and excitement was a lot for the tiny kitten and she now another nap seemed to be in order. She manages to drag the paper under the couch and into her pile to play with later before jumping to the top of the couch in falling asleep in the warm sunlight.

* * *

"Dad, daddy, we're home!" Rachel yelled as she and Quinn walked in the door, only to be met with silence. "Where are you guys?"

The pair checked the house, finding no sign of the men, and Hiram's car missing from the garage.

To Daddy: Did you guys leave?

To Rachel: Yes. We thought that was pretty clear.

"Quinn, they're gone. Again. They left me again."

"You don't know that Rach, maybe they just went to the store or something?" Quinn knew in her heart that this wasn't the case. The Berrys were gone, just like she had feared.

"I knew it! Why did I have to mess up again? Now they'll never be back!"

Rachel took off upstairs, slamming the door behind her.

"Meow."

"Elphie, what do we do now? They're really gone this time I think."

* * *

Quinn decided to wait a few minutes before setting Elphie down and following Rachel's path upstairs to their bedroom, going directly to the bathroom where she knew she would find Rachel sitting on the floor.

What she didn't expect to find was Rachel sitting in a puddle of blood with her left arm slashed open.

"Oh fuck, Rachel!" Quinn started to panic. She grabbed the nearest towel, soaked it with cold water, and wrapped it around the mangled arm.

"No, Elphie!" Quinn groaned as she scooped up the kitten who had walked through the blood and was leaving tiny kitty prints on the floor as she tried to climb up on Rachel.

Elphie hissed and growled as Quinn held her feet under the running water to wash them clean of the blood.

"Oh relax, would you. It's not like you're the Wicked Witch and the water is going to melt you or something. If you wouldn't have walked through it in the first place you wouldn't be having this problem."

Quinn received a loud hiss in reply along with an attempted swat to her hand.

"Damn, alright, you can be done." Quinn rolled her eyes as she dried off the occasionally swinging paws. "There, now just stay out of the way and we don't have to do that again." This time Quinn set Elphie down directly on Rachel to avoid further mishap before moving to tend to Rachel's arm.

"I can't believe they left again."

"I can't believe you cut again, so we both have a few shocking things to deal with right now." Quinn was frustrated. She thought Rachel was doing fine. She had been acting, well, normal lately and now this? She knows being short with her right now is a bad idea, but she couldn't stop. Between the mix of disappointment and fear of how bad Rachel's arm had looked, she couldn't stop how it was coming out.

"I'm sorry, Quinn, okay? You don't have to yell at me about it."

"Than why did you?"

"I don't know! I didn't know what I was suppose to do or feel, alright? How the fuck would you feel?"

"Humm hello, I got kicked out! I think I have a pretty good idea!"

"Just, leave me alone, Quinn. I can deal with this myself."

"Yea, you've done a real fine job at it so far." Quinn bit back.

Rachel let out a sob, immediately causing Quinn to feel guilty

"I'm sorry, Rachel. I'm just frustrated right now. I thought you were doing fine and now this. I just, I don't know what to think."

"It's fine. Can you just go away now? I'll clean up myself."

"Rach-"

"Just go, Quinn!"

Reluctantly, Quinn left the bathroom. "I'm sorry, Rachel. I don't know what I'm supposed to do right now. I'm so confused. I thought you were better. I'm sorry I let you down. I'm sorry I couldn't keep you safe."

To Shelby: Can you come over? Something's happened.

To Quinn: I'll be there as soon as I can. Is Rachel alright?

To Shelby: No, not really.

Quinn doesn't know that Rachel heard her and is now crying into Elphie's fur.

* * *

A/N: The next chapter will be the other half of this one. They were originally one big chapter, but due to suggestion, I've decided to split them to draw it out a little longer.

Thank you to TheIrishGilmore, Vampiretiger, Filmaddict, and BonesFaberry for your help and suggestions. Huge thank you to sayitwithyourhands who has basically become my partner in crime now!


	8. Everything's Gunna Be Alright

**Everything's Gunna Be Alright**

Quinn lead Shelby into the living room where Rachel had recently taken her usual place on the couch, Elphie in her arms.

"Hey baby girl. Quinn said you've had a rough day," Shelby coos, sitting next to her.

"Leave me alone, Shelby." Rachel's words are harsh and biting.

"Talk to me, Rachel."

"No! This is your fault! Why would I talk to you? They told me you came over yesterday. I told you not to come over here unannounced and you still did it anyway!"

"I'm sorry. I just wanted to bring you something."

"Well thanks a lot. You've managed to make me lose my dads, this time probably for good!"

"Rachel, they were thinking of leaving before Shelby came over! I heard them the night after they came home talking about how you would adjust and how it would be easier since I was here." Quinn added, hoping to calm Rachel's anger towards Shelby.

"So you knew too! Why does everyone but me get to decide what goes on in my life? Why does everyone get to make the decision to hide whatever they damn well please from me? What's next? the contract was all fake too?"

Rachel didn't notice Quinn pull out her phone.

To Santana: 911!

"Actually, the contract is real but it's not for the reasons you probably think."

"Whatever Shelby."

"The contract was to protect you from me. Please don't hate me for this. Your dads wanted to do what was best for you. They offered me a chance to be part of your life and I turned them down. I was selfish and stupid. I decided that I only wanted Broadway and that I wasn't ready to help raise a baby. It was a mistake that I've regretted even since."

"So why come back now? Bad enough you left me last year and adopted a replacement for me. Why now?"

"Because I realized that I made a mistake. I should have never walked away from you. Knowing what I know now, I wish that I wouldn't have."

"So you're only doing this because you feel guilty? Get out, Shelby. I don't want to see you!"

"Rachel, what if- what if you two come stay with me? We could be a family. The four of us. I could be your mom?"

"I don't want to go with you, Shelby. I thought that was clear? I don't want you to try to get custody of me. I don't want you! I want my dads! Just get out!"

Shelby sighed and stood up.

"Lets go to the kitchen, Shelby." Quinn suggested.

* * *

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know that she was going to react like that. I thought that she would be receptive to you."

"It's not your fault. If anything, it's my own for going against what she asked. I've probably screwed up for good now."

"I doubt it. Rachel is one of the most forgiving people that I know. I'm sure that she'll come around after things calm down. She's just having a really crappy day. I texted Santana and she should be able to help, Rachel tends to listen to her more often."

Feeling something hit her shirt, Shelby turned "What was that?"

"What?"

As she turned to face the fridge, Shelby was splattered by green paint. Elphie was on top of the fridge standing on a tube of paint. "It's paint. The cat is painting me!"

"Elphie! Get down! Bad kitty!" Quinn scolded her.

Elphie growled and leapt from the fridge onto Quinn's head, using her has a spring board before landing on the counter, ears pulled back as she continued to growl.

"Elphie! I swear you are the worst cat! Why did I pick you? You're just a pain in my ass!" Quinn was furious and screaming at the kitten seemed like the thing to do.

"Quinn Fabray! You do not threaten her! Shame on you! Yelling at an innocent cat who doesn't know better. I'm appalled at you!" Rachel screeched as she came storming into the kitchen, having heard Quinn yelling.

"Rachel, she painted Shelby and then jumped on my head! That cat is evil!"

Rachel glanced at Shelby and noticed the paint. She couldn't stop the small laugh that escaped before she regained her composure. "Where did she get the paint from?"

"I put it on the fridge yesterday when I was done."

"I believe I suggested that you put it away completely so Elphie didn't get into it in the first place. You don't get to yell at her for your screw up! As for jumping off your head, I don't blame her for that considering how mean you were being!" Rachel stomped back towards the living room, Elphie clutched in her arms, refusing to leave her with Quinn for another minute.

"I think I'm just going to leave. It would probably be the best idea right now." Shelby told Quinn.

"Yea, I understand. Thanks you coming over and at least trying."

"Let me know how things end up, alright? That she's ok."

"I will, don't worry."

* * *

As Shelby leaves the house, Santana and Brittany come in.

"Oh! Kitty!" Brittany nearly screeches when she sees Elphie in Rachel's arms. Without hesitation, she runs over and tries to pick her up.

Elphie hisses and swipes at Brittany's hand, causing the girl to frown.

Santana can't stand watching her girlfriend pout and steps in. "I think Elphie just wants to be with Rachel right now, Britt. I'm sure you'll get a chance to hold her soon. Just let her stay where she is right now."

Brittany only nods and goes to sit next to Quinn on the couch.

"So, what's going on this time? Why the 911?" Santana asks.

"Her dads left unannounced today," Quinn told her.

"For a week, month, what?"

"We don't know. They didn't leave a note or anything. They were just gone when we got home. Rachel cut and basically hates Shelby and myself right now."

"Shelby?"

"I had asked her to come over and we found out that she came by yesterday and ran into her dads so Rachel thinks that's why they left even though I heard them talking about leaving the night after they had gotten home. I didn't tell her that I had an idea. Shelby also let out some information regarding the contract and how she had the chance to help raise Rachel but turned it down."

"Got it. How about this, Britt, you stay here with Quinn and Rachel and I will go to mine. Give you two some time apart to cool off."

"I think that's a good idea," Brittany added in. She knew that keeping the girls together right now would be a bad combination and would probably lead to more fighting.

"Come on, Rach. Go put your coat on and we'll go."

Santana watches as Rachel hesitates to put Elphie down. It takes her nearly a minute to finally kiss the kitten before setting her down and walking out of the room.

Knowing what needs to be done, she walks over and picks the cat up, following Rachel to the door.

Before Rachel can get her coat completely buttoned, Santana walks over and puts Elphie inside, buttoning around the cat. She gives Santana a small smile and a nod of thanks.

* * *

"I really messed up, Britt."

"No you didn't."

"Yes I did. Rachel probably hates me so much now."

"It's Rachel, she doesn't really know how to hate anyone, especially not you. She's just sad and let down."

"I should have told her when I found out. I shouldn't have kept it from her."

"No, probably not. But now you know better. Why do you think Sanny and I know everything about each other? It's because hiding stuff doesn't make things better, it just hurts. You two need to be honest with each other. I know San's told you guys that before, you need to listen to her. She knows what she's talking about."

"I know we do, believe me. But I just thought that maybe I was wrong. Maybe it was something completely different they were talking about. I didn't want her to worry or get hurt because I made a mistake."

"How did that work out for you?"

"Horrible. I think that much is pretty obvious."

"Exactly, so by hiding something from her you both just got hurt instead. You didn't have to tell her what you thought, but just what you heard and let her decide for herself what it meant. All you had to do was be there for her. Rachel's kind of like a lost puppy. She needs someone to show her the way and what's right and wrong. Without the whole smacking her on the nose with a newspaper part. She needs love and attention. Someone that she can count on to tell her the truth and not sugar coat everything."

"I'm just so scared that I'll hurt her or say the wrong thing and just make everything worse. I can't lose her, Britt. I don't want to screw this up. Rachel means everything to me." Quinn bit back a sob at the confession.

"Then she needs to know that, Q. You two have got to start talking and stop holding stuff in."

"I know you're right, but it's just so hard."

"It gets easier to be open and honest. It won't hurt her or you as much as you think. I mean, it's Rachel. The most she's going to do is storm out of the room until she cools off then she'll be back in your arms."

"I'll work on it. We start therapy on Wednesday, so maybe that will start to help."

"Are you going together?"

"No, we have separate appointments for right now. The doctor thought it would be better to work individually for the time being. Obviously we can share whatever with each other though."

"It'll get better, Q. I promise."

Quinn tucked herself into Brittany's shoulder and let herself cry, eventually drifting off to sleep.

* * *

"Alright, start talking," Santana told Rachel as she sat against the headboard of her bed next to the girl.

Rachel found herself slightly disappointed when Elphie crawled over to Santana and settled against her, promptly falling asleep.

"She's had a rough day Rachel, so have you. Just let her sleep while you spill. What happened?"

"I just... I just snapped. I don't know what came over me. I was so angry and upset that they were gone. I thought that maybe they had finally changed and were going to stay. I guess I was wrong. I'm not worth them staying."

"No. You don't get to pity yourself. This is not your fault. If they can't see that your are worth being here for, than it's their problem and not yours."

"Everything was going so well though. We were like a real family again and now this. I can't believe Quinn knew and didn't tell me."

"I know Quinn, she was just scared. She didn't know how you would react if she told you. She probably thought it was better that you didn't know until something happened or if it even did."

"So you're defending her?"

"In a way, yes I am. Do I think that she should have told you? Yes, but I think her intentions were good even though they kind of backfired."

"I wish she would have told me so I wouldn't have gotten so attached this time."

"They're your dads, you're going to be attached to them no matter what happens. You will always love them and want them. They raised you. They are the family that you know and love despite all the crap that they've done."

"What about Shelby? She's only back out of pity."

"No, as much as I dislike her, I do think she's around because she wants to be. Hell, she came running because Quinn texted her. That's not pity, that's actually giving a damn."

"But she said the contract was because she didn't want to raise me."

"Rachel, she was young and had no idea what she was getting in to. I'm sure you would do anything as well to go for Broadway."

"I would never leave my child!"

"Yes, and that's you. Shelby is different. She thought it was all she wanted. She learned from her mistake and she's back and trying. I know she left you against last year, but did you ever consider how scared she probably was? You were 16 and had what she thought was the perfect life. She probably expected you to hate her and never want to see her."

"But I told her that I needed her and she didn't listen to me."

"And that was her mistake, not yours. She was still new to all of this. She knew what would happen if your dads found out that she broke the contract. She expected them to take you away again where she couldn't find you. At least this way she could be close by you."

"So she replaced me."

"She never replaced you, Rach. Beth can never replace you. You're her daughter, no one else can say that they have Shelby Corcoran's genes. You and you only get to be proud of that. Realize that Quinn desperately needed someone to take Beth and Shelby was there, offering to help. It was never about replacing you, it was her trying to help Quinn. I'm sure Shelby always wanted you no matter what she says. Just, give her a chance and a little credit. She's as lost as you are in this situation."

"I'm trying. I just got so mad and I thought it was all her fault. Everything was fine and then she showed up and ruined everything. I wish I would have always known they were going to leave me again. I wouldn't have been so mean to her."

"She'll forgive everything that happened today, it's part of being a mother. She will still be there if you let her. She loves you, Rachel. It doesn't take a genius to see it."

"So there's still a chance?"

"Without a doubt."

"What about with Quinn? I yelled at her."

"So what? Couples fight and it happens. She's not going anywhere, trust me on that. You two will apologize and kiss and make up like always."

Rachel gave Santana a sleepy smile followed by a yawn.

"Why don't you take a nap? I'll take you home in a few hour."

"Thanks, San."

"Don't mention it."

* * *

Hours later, Rachel makes her way to her room and finds Quinn sound asleep on their bed. She doesn't stop the few tears that fall as she leans down to kiss Quinn's crinkled forehead, watching her relax. "Goodnight, Quinn. I love you so much."

* * *

It's late when Quinn wakes up and feels something on her chest. Peaking her eyes open, she realizes that Elphie is sitting on her. Except, she's not asleep. Instead, the cat is seemingly glaring at her with as must hate as she can muster in her tiny body. "Hey, Elph." She reaches her hand out to pet her, but is greeted with a low growl causing her to yank her hand away. "I know you probably hate me for what happened, don't you? I'm sorry I hurt her, I regret it so much. I just thought I was protecting her and that nothing would actually happen. I thought they might change their minds and stay and she wouldn't of worried if I didn't tell her. I never expected things to happen like they did. I wish I could change everything and take it all back. I should have told her anyway, despite what I thought what was best. I hope you kept her safe today. That you gave her plenty of cuddles and love. I'm sure that she needed it. I wish it could have been me, but I guess you're the next best thing, aren't you? Go sleep with Rach, I'm sure she needs you more than you want to sit here and watch me like a creeper." Quinn watched with an amused smirk as Elphie gave her one last stare for good measure before running out of the room.


	9. Therapy

**Therapy**

Tuesday Evening

Quinn made her way up to their bedroom, having shut the first floor lights off. The district already called for a snow day tomorrow due to the blizzard coming down that was only due to continue throughout the night. Reaching the door, she pushed lightly but froze when she heard Rachel talking. Peaking through the crack, she could see Rachel sitting on the bed talking to Elphie. The kitten was sitting in Rachel's lap looking up at her, seeming to be listening intently.

"I'm nervous for tomorrow, Elphie. What if she's mean and doesn't want to listen to me? What if she tries to send me away somewhere because she thinks I'm crazy? I don't want them to take me away. I don't want to tell Quinn I'm scared because I don't want her to think worse of me. I mean, it's only one therapy appointment and probably not much is going to happen but I can't help it."

In the hall, Quinn was internally debating if she should interrupt or just let her be for a while. "I don't want her to know I was listening in. But, Brittany did say that we need to start being more honest and open, even if she's not acting like that right now. Should I just go talk to her? I don't want her to hate me. What to do? What to do? What to do? No, woman up, Quinn. If you want this relationship to work, which you do, very much, you need to walk in there and say something. She's terrified! She needs you to tell her that everything will be alright. Now, move your ass!"

With one final sigh, Quinn pushes the door open. "Hey Rach, what are you doing?"

"Nothing really. Just talking to Elphie," Rachel looked up and gave Quinn a small smile while she was screaming at herself in her mind. "Good job Rachel, admit you're talking to a cat. That'll get you shipped away for sure."

"Can I join you?"

"Sure. It's your room too, basically."

"Ok, it's now or never, Quinn. Do it already!" Settling onto the bed, she bites her lip before finally spitting the words out. "Hey Rach, can I talk to you about something?"

"Of course."

"I didn't mean to overhear and I really wasn't trying to listen in, but I heard you saying that you're scared for tomorrow. Want to talk about it?"

Rachel looks down and away from Quinn, chewing her lip in the processes, which Quinn has learned is a nervous habbit.

"We don't have to if you don't want. I just wanted to offer you the chance to talk. I'm not going to think any less of you. Honestly, I'm a little nervous as well."

"Really?"

"Yep. I mean there's so much that I could tell her that I've never told anyone, and I'm scared of what might come of it."

"Like what?"

"Just stuff about my parents and growing up there. About the things I went through with them. I'm not ready to tell you yet, but maybe one day, ok?"

"That's fine. I understand. I guess I just don't want her to send me away somewhere."

"She won't."

"How do you know?"

"I just know. You're by no means bad enough to send somewhere. Plus, you do have a support system and are going to therapy to get better. I won't let them take you anywhere."

"What if I don't like her?"

"We find someone else. If you're not comfortable, you don't have to stay there. You have to be comfortable with who you're talking to and with all of this. You have to be for this to work."

"I'm sorry about how I acted yesterday. I shouldn't have taken it out on you."

"No, you shouldn't have. But, I do understand that you were angry and confused. It happens, hunnie, and we will get through it when it does. I'm not going anywhere and I hope that you aren't either."

"No, I'm not. I feel bad for what I said to Shelby."

"We talked, and she still wants to be a part of your life. She's willing to forgive what happened if you do. She loves you and doesn't want to lose you."

"Maybe we can go talk to her tomorrow? Or I could go alone. I don't want to make you see Beth when you're not ready to."

"Lets just see how it goes tomorrow first. I don't think I would mind seeing her if it happened."

"So, we're really going to do this tomorrow?"

"Yep, we really are. Oh, there's no school tomorrow so we can sleep in. Your appointment isn't until 3:45 anyway."

"Can we cuddle and watch a move? I kind of just want you to hold me right now. Only if you want to though."

"I'll always hold you when you need it. Why don't you go to your routine and pick a movie?"

"Ok. Here, take Elphie. And please try not to threaten her this time."

"I swear I didn't mean what I said yesterday. I was just frustrated."

"I know you would never do anything to hurt her. It's all ok."

* * *

Rachel, are you ready?" Dr. Cay asked from her office door.

"You'll be just fine, Rach," Quinn whispers as she kisses her forehead.

* * *

"Ok Rachel, since this is out first time, we wont get into too much detail to start out with. This is more of a chance for us to get a feel for each other and get comfortable. It's important for you to feel that you can talk openly with me. Anything you say in here will not leave this room. The only exception is if I think that you're a danger to yourself or someone else. Is that alright with you?"

"Yes. That sounds fair."

"Good. Now, I do want to get to know you a little bit more. I would like to get a better idea of your life and begin to develop a plan for us to use to help you. Now, for that always boring question, what brings you here, Rachel?"

"Didn't my mo- Shelby, tell you when she called?"

"Yes, she gave me the basic idea, but I want to hear it from you. What do you think we need to work on?"

"I don't- I- I don't know where to start or what even to say. I'm sorry. I'm just so nervous."

"It's ok to be nervous. It's completely normal. I'm a complete stranger that's asking you to bear your soul and tell me your deep dark secrets. It'll get easier as we progress, so for now, lets start small. Pick something. Anything you could possible want to talk about? You get complete control over our session. You get to chose the topics and how far we take them."

"I still don't know."

"Can be anything you want. Anything in the world."

Rachel's really not sure what caused it to come to mind "Have you ever been to Cedar Point?"

Dr. Cay smiled and decided to play along in hopes of getting Rachel to open up. "I've been numerous times. I used to live about an hour from there when I was growing up so a few of my friends and I used to go all of the time in the summer. How about you? Have you been?"

"Yes, but only once, years ago actually."

"Want to tell me about it?"

"I was around 11 and my dads took me. Everything was just so big to me and I wanted to ride everything. I'd never seen anything like it before. I was in total awe. We rode some of the smaller rides until I decided that I wanted to ride a real roller coaster. My daddy took me in line, dad is afraid of heights, and we waited for what seemed like hours before we got to the front."

"What happened? Did you ride?"

"No. I panicked right before we got on and started crying. I begged him not to take me on it any longer. He told me that it was alright and that we didn't have to ride it. That there was plenty of other rides that weren't as big that we could go on. They bought me an ice cream to make me feel better."

"Did you do anything else that day?"

"We watched a couple of the shows that they had and they took me on some more of the smaller rides like he said we could do. When we were leaving for the day we walked by the coaster that I was too scared to get on. I regretted not riding it all day. I felt so much like a wimp because I didn't get on it. I guess I had stopped and was looking at it because my daddy was leaning down and asking if I wanted to try again. I knew it would be my last chance so I said yes. I got scared again when we got there, but daddy told me that he would be right next to me and he would hold my hand the whole time and wouldn't let go. That he wouldn't let anything happen to me, and I believed him."

"So you rode it?"

"I did, and it was the most incredible feeling of freedom I've ever felt. Daddy picked me up and swung me around in the air when we got off. He was so proud of me for doing it. I think I smiled for two days afterwards."

"That sounds like a very nice memory with your dads."

"It is, but after that things started to change."

"What do you mean?"

"They started working more hours after that and were home a lot less. It was like it was our last chance of doing something like that as a family for good. For so long, and still now, I try to figure out where everything went wrong after that day. Did I do something wrong? Maybe I acted like too big of a baby with the coaster? I keep going back to the day and replaying it, trying to figure out what I could have done that caused them to leave me."

"Maybe something happened with their jobs that made things change?"

"I don't know. I figured it wasn't my place to ask so I never did."

"How were things before the trip?"

"Perfect. We were, or I thought, so happy and loving. We did everything together and they were always around for me when I needed them."

"And now?"

"They are never home. They were home after Christmas for a while but then they left again. I think for good this time."

"Did they tell you they were leaving?"

"No, they didn't even leave a note. Quinn said she overheard them talking about how I would be fine since she was here now and that I seemed to be adjusting well."

"Did she actually hear them say they were leaving for good?"

"Well, no. But when I texted them and asked if they had left, they said yes."

"I think maybe we shouldn't decide that they are gone for good until it's known for sure. Maybe call them and talk to them about it? Look and see if they left a note?"

"I checked the whole house for a note and didn't find one. They didn't answer their phones when I called them."

"I'm sure that there is an explanation for it and you'll get your answer. Now, we are out of time for today, but I think we should meet on a weekly basis for right now and see what becomes of it. We can change at any time so our meetings are more or less frequent."

"Yea, once a week sounds good. Thank you. This wasn't as hard as I thought it would be."

"You're very welcome, Rachel. It was a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise."

* * *

"Alright, Quinn, it's your turn."

As they sat, Dr. Cay noted that Quinn's posture was a lot stiffer, tenser than Rachel's had been. "Alright Quinn, lets get started. I'll tell you the same as I told Rachel. I want you to be comfortable with me. Anything we discuss-"

"You really don't have to do the speech. I've heard it plenty of times. I know the drill. Nothing will be told to anyone, confidentially, blah blah blah. Can we just get started?"

She was a bit shocked, having never had a patient with the type of attitude of Quinn. "Well alright. So, you've obviously been to therapy before?"

"Yep, my parents used to force me to go as a kid."

"And why was that?"

"Because I wasn't a particularly happy child and they disapproved of that. They would pay them extra to tell everything that I said and what we talked about. They would find out everything. The Fabray's are supposed to project this perfect image and I didn't do that so they sent me to therapist after therapist to fix me because they didn't want to do it themselves. They didn't have them time and honestly I don't think that they really cared anyway. Hell, they've kicked me out twice now in a year."

"Why were you so unhappy as a child?"

"I had no friends. I was the fat ugly kid that was made fun of and picked on."

"You certainly don't seem like you could have been."

"Yea, that's the magic of diet and a nose job. Russell was willing to do whatever it took to restore the family image so it was easy to convince him."

"What happened after?"

"I join the Cheerios freshman year and became the popular girl that everyone wanted. I picked on the kids below me to keep my status as head bitch."

"Even though you knew what it felt like to be the outcast?"

"I didn't care who I hurt at that point. I just wanted to be on top and not to be the one getting made fun of so I did what I thought I had to."

"You sound like you regret doing so."

"I do to some extent. I feel bad for those that I hurt that I shouldn't have. Like Rachel, for instance. I used to be horrible to her. Called her names and threw slushies at her. I made her the school outcast and basically encouraged everyone to pick on her as they pleased."

"Why?"

"I was jealous of her. She was beautiful without even realizing it. She had, well has, all of these hopes of getting out of this town and making a name for herself. All of these aspirations. She acted like she had this perfect family life. She was everything that I wanted to be and wasn't. I wanted to knock her down so she felt like I did. I thought it would make me feel better about myself but it just made me feel like shit when I learned what I caused and that her life wasn't what I thought it was."

"I think I'm going to stop you there and leave the rest for Rachel to tell me when she's ready. I don't want you to betray the trust you have with her by telling me something you didn't mean too. If that's alright with you?"

"Yea, that's fine."

"You mentioned that your parents kicked you out, why?"

"The first time was for getting pregnant. Eventually Judy kicked Russell out for cheating on her and I went back after Beth was born. She took him back and then let him throw me out again when I told them I was a lesbian. I've been living at Rachel's since Thanksgiving."

"That must have been hard, having you parents abandon you like that."

"It was the first time. The second I basically expected it to happen. I think the hardest part was them signing custody of me over to the Berry's without a fight. They really didn't want me. The boxed up my stuff and left it on the front porch with a letter that said I was disowned and to not contact them. It hurt, but honestly, I think it was a good thing that it happened. I love living with Rachel. I love the freedom to be who I want without them breathing down my neck and telling me that everything I was doing was wrong. I don't have to live my life to impress them any longer and that's more than enough to make up for what they did. Them letting me go was the best thing they've ever done for me."

"But it still hurts sometimes."

"Yea, it does. I mean they were supposed to be my parents and love me no matter what and that obviously didn't happen and it never will. I've been feeling better as time has passed and I've learned how much better off I am without them, but I think it will always be a sore spot no matter what I do."

"You mentioned Beth. Shelby told me that she's your biological daughter that she adopted."

"Can we maybe not talk about her yet? I'm not ready to go there."

"That's perfectly fine. We can jump around on topics as you want. We'll come back to her later on."

"Thank you."

"I think we are done for today, Quinn. Unless there's something else you would like to talk about?"

"No, I think I'm good for now."

"Alright, well I think once a week meetings will be good for the time being and we'll adjust as need be."

"Sounds good to me. Can I go now?"

"Yes, of course. Have a good day."

"You too."

* * *

"Lets go Rach. Did you still want to go see Shelby or just go home?"

"Can we go to Shelby's? You don't have to come with me though."

"No, I'm going to be with you for this. I'll be alright. You need to do this for the two of you. I can handle it."

"Thank you. I really don't want to do this alone."

* * *

AN: Please let me know if there is still interest in this story!

Thank you to Sayitwithyourhands for dealing with my madness of thoughts and plans and for the idea for this chapter!


	10. Kitty Sense

Kitty Sense

The girls sat in the car in silence, looking at the house in front of them. Both terrified for different reasons; Quinn for the risk of seeing Beth, and Rachel for potentially losing the only parent she thinks she has a chance with.

"Are you sure about this, Quinn?"

"No. Are you?"

"Not really, no. Should we just get it over with or maybe come back another day?"

"Lets... Lets just do this and be done with it."

* * *

They stood hand in hand on the porch while Rachel takes a deep breath and rings the bell.

"Hi, Shelby, do you think we could talk?"

"Sure, come in girls."

When they make their way to the couch, Quinn glances nervously around the room, looking for Beth while hoping she wasn't around as well.

"Beth is asleep upstairs, Quinn."

Blushing, "I'm sorry."

"You have no reason to be, don't even worry. You have ever right to be nervous right now. It's okay."

Rachel gave Quinn's hand a squeeze, hoping to comfort her. She smiled when she received one back. Neither girl attempted to let go.

"Shelby, I'm sorry for what I said yesterday. I know that I had no right to say what I did, and I can't apologize enough for doing it. It wasn't your fault that it happened and I'm sorry that I blamed you. Please don't hate me. I don't want us to stop trying. I don't have.. Please don't leave me again."

"Oh, Rachel," Shelby moved to sit on the table in front of the girls and took Rachel's free hand, wrapping hers around it. "I'm not going anywhere. I promise you. I know you were hurt and angry yesterday, and yes, what you said hurt, but I do understand that you lashed out over it. I forgive you for what happened if you forgive me. I'm sorry I went against your wishes and came over. I didn't even consider that they would be there, none the less discover that you knew who I was."

"I guess that doesn't really matter now that they're gone anyway. You can come by whenever now."

"I'll still try to do better with calling first instead of just showing up, okay?"

"Yea, okay."

Their conversation was suddenly interrupted by a cry from the baby monitor on the table. "Excuse me, I'll be right back." Shelby squeezed Rachel's hand again before letting go and leaving the room.

"Quinn, are you alright?"

"I think so? I know Shelby is going to come back with Beth so I'm scared."

"I'm right here Quinn, and we can leave any time, alright?"

"Ok. Just, don't let go of me?"

"Never."

* * *

When Shelby returns, she has a squirming Beth in one arm and a bottle in hand. "Quinn, did you want to feed her?"

"I- uhh. No. No, that's ok." She wanted to say yes, boy did she want to say yes, but she couldn't bring herself to do so. She's sure that she's a coward for turning down the chance. Now, all she can do is sit and watch as Shelby feeds her.

* * *

She's not sure how much time has passed or even what Rachel and Shelby discussed when she realizes that Shelby is no longer holding Beth, but rather the little girl is sitting on the floor staring at her. For the first time since she was born, Quinn gets a good look at her baby girl. She can't help but stare in awe at the actual human being that she created. She looks so much like her it's a bit frightening, but she can see Puck's influence for sure. Beth is looking back at her, as if studying her as well, her little mind trying to figure out who this person is that refuses to look away from her and looks like her.

Rachel breaks her from her concentration when she pulls her hand when she stands, forcing her up as well.

"Lets go home, Quinn," Rachel gently tells her.

She can see it in Rachel's eyes that she knows it's become too much for her to handle. Rachel is trying to protect her and get her out.

"Thank you, Shelby, for forgiving me. I guess we will see you sometime soon."

"You're my daughter, Rachel, I want things to work between us. You as well Quinn, you are welcome any time to see Beth, alright? I'm not going to hide her from you, obviously."

"Thank you Shelby," Quinn smiles at her.

* * *

Elphie sat herself on the couch next to Quinn, held tilted slightly to the side, as if studying her intently. Even in her simple kitty mind, she knows when something's not right with her girls, and right now, something is not right with her Quinn. Sure, she enjoys harassing her, but that's only because it's fun and she knows that Quinn will play with her if she does, while Rachel would just hold her. Quinn is just sitting there staring blankly at her laptop. She's not typing anything or even moving, just looking. Making up her mind, Elphie lets out a meow before jumping onto the keyboard, back to the screen and looking at Quinn.

The sudden movement startles Quinn "Elphie, what are you doing? I'm trying to.. Well I don't really know, but you're in the way."

With a quick grab, Elphie is back on the spot she had just vacated. Giving Quinn a quick glair, she hops back onto the keys and paws at Quinn's hand.

"Elphie, I told you already. Just stay down there, ok?" she tells the cat before moving her back once again.

Letting out a kitty sized huff, she wastes no time in hoping back up, this time pawing gently at Quinn's chest with a purr.

"Why can't you go harass Rachel, you goof." This time Quinn gives her a small smile.

When Elphie meows at her in return, she can't suppress the small giggle and eye roll. "Alright, fine. You win, happy now?" This time, she picks her up and cuddles the tiny cat to her chest, kissing her head and running her fingers through the short fur. Elphie is purring loudly in response, happy to have accomplished her task.

Just a few minutes later, Elphie has perched herself onto Quinn's shoulder, snuggled against her neck, still purring softly as she watches the screen as Quinn clicks and scrolls around. She has no idea what this "Adoption" thing is that she seems to be so interested in, but she figures as long as she's still sitting here, it'll help Quinn figure out whatever she's working on, or at least that makes perfect kitty sense to her.

* * *

A/N: I'm so sorry for how this chapter has taken me and for it being extremely short! I cannot shake the writers block that I currently have, but I'm going to try!


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